


His Hands Stained With Wine

by captain_trashmouth



Series: Bounty and Boundary [1]
Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Western, Anal Play, Anal Sex, Bottom Galo Thymos, Bounty Hunters, Choking, Churches & Cathedrals, Coming Out, Dom/sub Undertones, Edgeplay, Eventual Smut, Frontier Justice, Getting to Know Each Other, Guilt, It's a WESTERN, Light BDSM, Light Bondage, M/M, Masturbation, Mentions of Violence, Murder, Oral Sex, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Outlaw Lio, Past Abuse, Period Typical Attitudes, Porn With Plot, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Sacrilege, Service Top, Sheriff Galo, The tags make this sound like it's all porn, Top Lio Fotia, Vigilantism, Violence, alternative universe - no powers, but I swear it's not, physical violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2020-01-16
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:14:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 39,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22042408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captain_trashmouth/pseuds/captain_trashmouth
Summary: The story of how Lio Fotia finds peace and quiet, and a place to rest.The story of how Galo Thymos finds his faith, loses his faith, then finds it again.These are the same story.The self-indulgent western AU nobody but me asked for.
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: Bounty and Boundary [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1577083
Comments: 143
Kudos: 157





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to everyone that supported me through the process of writing this massive fic. Its completion is dedicated to all of you.
> 
> \- cap
> 
> Please enjoy this **WONDERFUL** fanart by @wildheartsneverdie [here](https://66.media.tumblr.com/ce5895eaaaf54c14d9cd6b05694fb715/3e336434f64d20ac-5b/s1280x1920/5bdd5bc092d3c59deb28954b6195972dabec434d.jpg) and by @ariespsyche [here](https://twitter.com/ariespsyche/status/1218629256109912064?s=20)

God was not something that Lio thought about often, given how often he found himself using His name in vain. He knew, that by the standards the faithful held, that he was surely among those condemned to eternal damnation, but it didn’t matter. Whatever came at the end, there was not much he could do about it. He contemplated this as the stub of a cigarette hanging lazily between two fingers of his bandaged hand, nearly burned to ash. Regardless, he certainly wasn’t helping his case this way, reclined with spread legs against a pew as he downed misappropriated communion wine with a sour face. To Lio, his drink was just wine, but he was sure that someone would be downright furious when they discovered it was missing come Sunday morning. He reveled in his smug tipsiness for a long time until he heard footsteps approaching the door.

Boots crunched against the dirt and stones of the path, and the faint clink of spurs overlaid every careful step. Lio snuffed the candle he’d been burning as one of the doors swung open, revealing the moonlit silhouette of a man. It was far too dark for detail without the dim yellow glow of the candle, but it could not disguise a muffled curse accompanied by the distinct sound of someone tripping over their own feet. The stranger called out, voice ringing through the silence as if someone had struck a bell with a hammer. “Is anyone here?” 

Lio winced as the loud noise penetrated the comfortable haze of the wine and quiet, and he heaved a sigh as he set the wine bottle aside and lit the candle again. There was really only one person that it could be, given the late hour and the fact that every other person in the town was asleep at this time. He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed before returning to lazing about in his spot, content to let the intruder come to him. He was beyond caring about anything, and he would be damned if he would move after he’d spent all that time getting comfortable. The footsteps continued to approach, and not once did Lio look back. There was no need. He’d know that lumbering, clumsy gait anywhere. Truth be told, it wasn't as if Lio had meant to keep a close eye on the sheriff, but the man was clearly an idiot, always charging in places he didn’t belong and hollering in ways that were certain to piss off the wrong person someday. He disturbed the peace more than Lio and his associates did, which was to say that the sheriff, blinding enthusiasm and good nature aside, was a downright mess. Still, Lio harbored a small affection for the bright-eyed earnestness that was Galo Thymos, and generally did his best to stay out of the man’s way. 

As the sheriff rounded the corner of Lio’s pew, the outlaw held out his arm to offer him the bottle but was waved off as Galo readied his lecture. “Care to explain to me why I had to walk my happy ass all the way across God’s green earth in the middle of the night due to a report of someone lurking around the church?” Galo questioned, clearly annoyed and tired. The light of the candle cast the sheriff’s face in unflattering shadow, making the angles of his nose and jaw look distorted.

“Evening to you too, sheriff,” Lio replied acerbically. He stubbed his cigarette out on the pew and took yet another drink that stained his lips, making them stand out full and dark against his pretty, pale face. A stray droplet trickled from the corner of his mouth, and he wiped it away with the back of his good hand. “Last I checked, praying is not a crime.”

The sheriff scoffed rudely. "As if you were actually praying," Galo rolled his eyes at that, exasperated. “Yes, but if I know the law, which I do, trespassing, breaking and entering, and destruction of property are all crimes. I’m going to have to arrest you, Lio. Come on, now. Let’s go.” He made to pull his cuffs from his belt, but Lio had no intention of moving.

Lio snorted a laugh as he shook his head saying, “Are you ever not boring? Coming to arrest a man during his personal time with God, the audacity.” He drew out the word God, drawl lingering over the word in the same way his eyes had so often lingered on Galo. He ran his tongue over his teeth, the sweet taste of wine coloring his senses. He smirked, knowing that he was deliberately toeing a dangerous line if the sheriff was not in the mood for fun and games.

“I beg your pardon; I will have you know that I am very charming and very capable of fun! Ask anyone!” Galo retorted, placing an affronted hand to his chest as if clutching an imaginary string of pearls. “I am a joy to be around!” His eyebrows furrowed and his lower lip stuck out as he pouted at Lio.

Lio outright laughed at that, bright and happy. “Sheriff, I bet you’ve got a stick so far up your ass that you can taste wood,” he remarked, sucking air through his teeth as he took too big of a swallow, wine working its way down his throat with just an edge of pain. “I bet you’ve never, ever done a sin. Not even one.”

“Are you always such a smug little bastard?” Galo asked, chuckling to himself as he too plopped down in the pew next to Lio.

“I don’t know about that,” Lio countered, eyes a little glassy. “You’d have to ask my ma.” He had meant it with self-deprecating humor in mind, but Galo’s eyes went wide regardless.

“Oh,” Galo said quietly, embarrassed over the unintentional insult he’d just made. Scuffing the toe of his boot against the floor, he scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck like a child that had been firmly chastised. “I apologize, I did not aim to hurt you.” 

“You meant no harm,” Lio replied, shrugging before nudging his companion in the ribs with a bony elbow.

They sat in semi-comfortable silence for a long while, watching the candlelight flicker over the facade of the chapel. Galo bounced his leg, nervously opening and closing his mouth as if he had something to say but could not seem to find the right words.

“Whatever you want to ask, just spit it out already,” Lio challenged. He cradled the now half-empty bottle in the crook of his good arm and squared his jaw as if he was preparing himself for a fight.

“Not to put my nose into your business even further, but did you come here for confession? Because I don’t think that they do that here,” Galo asked, voice gentle and earnest.

“I came here to think, and then I started drinking because I couldn’t stop thinking.” Lio admitted, heaving a sigh as he offered the bottle to Galo once more. This time, the sheriff accepted it. He held it too carefully in his hands, in the same way one might hold a poisonous snake. He eyed it suspiciously and sniffed at the mouth of the vessel, wrinkling his nose in disgust before lowering it again.

“Just as I suspected,” Lio observed with a smirk. “You are as pure as a fresh fallen snow, you have never done anything bad in your entire life. What is the issue?” Lio leaned in conspiratorially. “Are you scared of going to hell? Or are you scared that you might sin and find that you can’t stop yourself from wanting more?” He swayed forward as he talked, breath hot and tinged sour-sweet by wine. If he were any closer, his lips would be brushing the shell of Galo’s ear. 

Galo’s face flushed red with embarrassment at Lio’s sudden proximity. As the smaller man sat back, Galo eyed the wine bottle in his lap and picked it up, shot Lio a quick glance, and took a deep drink. Lio watched him closely, dilated pupils trained on the movement of his throat as he drank. Galo gasped for air and set the bottle down hard on the wooden bench, shaking his head and scowling as he wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “That was absolutely vile. How are you still alive after drinking that? It may as well be vinegar!” He stuck his tongue out in disgust. When he finally opened his eyes again, he found that Lio was looking at him with an indecipherable expression. The closest thing Galo could equate it to was hunger, but there was a tinge of sadness there.

“Well,” Lio said nonchalantly as he sat back and stretched his arms up over his head, before folding them to pillow his neck. “I figure if it’s good enough for God and his children, then it is certainly good enough for me.”

Galo spluttered and coughed as he looked at Lio in abject horror. “Oh sweet Jesus, was that _communion wine_?” His voice was shrill as he realized the weight of what he’d done. Lio tried and failed to keep a straight face, giggles breaking through his pinched mouth and bringing tears to his eyes as Galo continued to stare at his hands with existential dread.

Lio’s giggles dissolved into hiccups, which dissolved into wheezing. He gently patted Galo on the shoulder and wiped the tears from his eyes before saying, “That’s alright Galo, it happens to the best of us. Now you can be a lowly sinner like all us other mere mortals. Fuck, that sure was funny though. Got any other sins you’d like to commit while you’re at it?" Lio could sense the opening for a gamble, and being both foolish and deeply lonely, he decided it was worth the risk. "Maybe go steal a horse, or start a fire? Maybe go to a cathouse?”

Galo looked at Lio aghast, “What in the hell are you talking about?! Lio, no! I’ve never done any of those things! I’ve never even kissed anyone, I could never, with a… a…” He trailed off, shaking his head again as his face burned hot with the admission. 

That minor detail garnered Lio's full and undivided attention. Collecting the bottle from where Galo had sat it down and taking a deep swallow, Lio’s eyes narrowed, readying himself to either be angry or to get punched as he asked, “What, never had a little rough company? Or is that beneath you up there on your high horse, your majesty? Does the great Galo Thymos look down on us lowly streetwalkers?" Lio did not know why he felt like being mean, but he was overcome with the sudden and overwhelming desire to hit Galo in his stupid, pretty face and make him just a little less perfect.

Galo put his hands up in a placating gesture as he babbled, “No, no! I mean with a… with a woman.” Red-faced, he frantically ran both hands through his hair, turning it wild as he tugged at his own scalp. “I shouldn’t even say this, that’s not normal, right? To not think of women that way?” He continued to run his mouth, unable to stop now that the dam had burst. He’d never told anyone this, and now here he was, in a dark church with a wanted criminal, telling him about things that could get him, the _sheriff_ , thrown in jail or worse. “I mean, it’s not that I don’t find them pretty, because I do, but I don’t find them… interesting. Appealing? They're sure nice to talk to but I don’t ever find myself wanting to touch them. Women, I mean? Oh hell, I’m going to jail. I should just go resign my position and lock myself in a cell-” Galo snatched the bottle and tipped it back, draining a long drink as if he wanted to drown the swirling turmoil in his belly.

Lio sensed that Galo was teetering on the edge of panic and placed a gentle hand against the big man’s back to rub soothing circles. “There there, what are you so upset over?” Lio asked softly, as if he were trying to coax a scared animal out of hiding. “It’s just you and me here, nobody else is going to hear what you’ve said. There is nothing wrong with you. People are just made different sometimes. Trust me.” Lio tugged the mostly empty bottle from Galo’s big hands, his own looking dwarfed by the other.

The sheriff looked so small as he looked up at Lio from his hunched over position, doe-eyed and a little more than scared. “Why... would you say something like that? What could you possibly know about it?”

Lio knew a crossroads when he saw one. He could comfort this veritable stranger, or he could walk away. He looked up at the stained-glass window and felt the urge to take a risk. He murmured, “I’m made different too.”

“What’s so different about you?” Galo asked, sniffling. The silence of the church wrapped both of them up, creating this small pocket of safety that both of them could inhabit. The darkness outside of the candle’s yellow-orange light curtained the world. They were alone together; two strangers in adjacent rooms, separated by a locked door.

“I’m like you. With the whole…” He trailed off, waving his hand as if motioning to everything Galo had said. “Uh. Women, thing.” Lio tucked his hair behind his ear, uncertain as to why he was suddenly shy. Lio Fotia? _Shy_? It rang in his head like a bad joke. He was the undisputed boss of a notorious gang, for chrissakes. Why was he feeling so exposed over this trivial thing? Vulnerability was not his strong suit, and as a rule, he never let anyone see that soft underbelly he tried so hard to hide. And yet here was this man, this being who was his exact equal and opposite, who had managed to sink into his skin without even trying. He was a thorn in Lio’s side, a fucking pain in Lio’s ass, and yet? 

“Oh,” Galo whispered, small and awed, breaking Lio from his thoughts. And oh, there it was. Like machinery clicking into place, it crystallized. Lio wanted Galo to _think highly of him_. To _like_ him. And what was that, if not the punchline to an even worse joke? Lio Fotia, a notorious fugitive and felon, cared about whether the local sheriff thought he was a good person or not. But out of all Lio’s multitude of crimes, he did not consider desiring men among them. It seemed so frivolous and silly next to all the other things that Lio had done, that loving a man would be a sin.

Completely unaware of Lio’s internal monologue, Galo took Lio’s bandaged hand in both of his own, cradling it so that his palm faced up. “What happened to your hand? Do you need stitches? Here, let me have a look.” Lio winced a little as Galo’s fingers stripped the soiled dressing and looked at the laceration beneath. It was angry and red but healing well enough on its own. 

Lio did not want to tell him the truth, which was that it was a defensive wound he’d gained from a fight with an ambitious fresh member of his own crew. The man was deep in the clay now, so it didn’t matter. Lio had put him down like the dog he was, quick and deserved. “Barbed wire. Cut myself jumping a fence.”

Galo looked at him, his bright blue eyes colored gray in the candlelight, but still sharp enough to see through the lie. He looked as though he wanted to call bullshit, but instead shook his head sadly and softly said, “Alright.” 

As the sheriff traced his work-roughened fingers around Lio’s upturned palm, prickling heat washed over Lio in waves. The gentle touch left sparks in its wake, and Lio tried to suppress the shiver that rolled up his spine and raised ripples across his skin. Lio took in a shaky breath, attempting to center himself as Galo cleared his throat, feeling the strange tension overtaking them. 

The sheriff realized that he’d been holding on to the other man’s hand for too long, and abruptly dropped it with a nervous laugh. He did not lean away. “It will heal without stitches, but you should...” Galo tried to say, his voice cracking with the effort. When did his mouth get so dry? He licked his lips, suddenly self-conscious. “You should, um, make sure to clean it and change the bandage again.”

Their faces were just a breath apart, neither of them remembered leaning in. It was not a kiss as much as it was a barely there brush of lips, a slow-motion glancing blow, a midnight breeze rippling through a swaying wheat field. Time trickled sweet and slow around them, honeyed light dripping off them like liquid gold. Lio tentatively traced his tongue along the other man’s lower lip, following it up with a nip. Galo eagerly gasped into his mouth, surging forward to clumsily twist one hand in Lio’s hair and wrap the other tight around his waist to crush the smaller man against his chest. Lio flinched, bad hand cradled protectively against his torso as he wrenched his way out of Galo’s grip to scramble backwards across the pew. Galo looked as if he’d been slapped, cold water dumped on a low burning fire, until he saw the fear on Lio’s face. Before Galo could say even a word, Lio was gone, faded into the dark as if he’d never been there at all. 

As the candle burned out, Galo downed the last of the bottle of wine, and walked out into the cold, clear night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two sides of the same coin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is turning into a monster as I write it.

Lio kept playing the night’s events back in his head. When Galo had lunged at him, truthfully, he had panicked. Even though the bigger man’s actions were driven by unmistakable desire and enthusiasm, there was no way around it: Lio had gotten spooked. It wasn’t anything Galo had done, but Lio’s mind had chosen that particular moment to remind him of all the times and all the ways that exact scenario had gone wrong for him before. Unfortunately the mind, as always, spared no detail. He cursed under his breath as he made his way back to the Burnish’s hideout in the dark. It was fucking cold, he was fucking tired, and he was fucking furious. He couldn’t believe himself. He had finally gotten a chance at something he wanted, and he’d pissed away the opportunity by tearing out into the night like a frightened rabbit. It wasn’t like him to be skittish, but he couldn’t undo it now. Normally, he was cool and collected, always in control. Something about that man got under his skin and set him off-center. 

He clenched and unclenched his hands, shaking them out to get rid of the trembling that had followed him since he’d fled the church. He supposed it made sense, in a way. He could name few people that had been kind to him, and even fewer men. He’d spent most of his life being chased by one thing or another, so it was within reason to say that he had reservations about trusting people, even those that he felt a distinct and undeniable attraction toward. He was mad as hell by the time he made it back to the abandoned house, and half frozen too. Stomping his way up the low steps, Lio kicked open the door and stormed inside, startling the hell out of his two lieutenants that sat in a nest of blankets in front of a roaring fireplace. Lio couldn’t be bothered to examine the fact that they leapt apart as if caught doing something wrong. Both men reflexively reached for their hip holsters, but stopped when they realized it was Lio barging into their home.

“Christ on high, Lio, what the fuck got into you?” Gueira yelped. “Goddamnit, you scared the piss out of us.” He scowled childishly, upset at being caught off guard. His other lieutenant, a tall dark-haired man called Meis, held his cigarette between his lips as he lit it. Taking a long drag and exhaling a cloud of smoke toward the ceiling, he cast a wary eye on his boss. The three of them had known each other long enough to know when it was in their best interest not to fucking ask, but Meis was annoyed at Lio’s late arrival. It wasn’t like Lio to behave like this, but his disruption of their otherwise quiet evening couldn’t go unaddressed. “Someone put a burr up your ass, big boss?” Meis asked, arching an irritated eyebrow for emphasis. 

“It’s none of your goddamn business,” Lio snarled, storming his way over to the room he’d occupied since they’d found this squat. The house itself was not in bad shape, but it was clearly abandoned and had fallen into a state of mild disrepair. As he slammed the door to his room, Gueira and Meis exchanged a knowing look with each other and elected to ignore the very obvious tantrum being thrown on the other side of the house. “Think he got in trouble with the law again?” Meis asked quietly, leaning against Gueira’s shoulder. He took a drag from his smoke before continuing. “Maybe he finally got on the wrong side of that sheriff he’s taken a shine to.” Meis was not a man to speak freely, preferring to choose his words deliberately and carefully. 

Gueira gave an exaggerated shrug, his arms held wide, saying, “Your guess is as good as mine. I thought that Thymos wasn’t going to give us any trouble though. Lio specifically told us to raid outside his jurisdiction so that we wouldn’t bother this town…” He sighed, then took the cigarette from Meis’ mouth and took a drag of his own. “Here I was thinking it might be nice to settle down for a while.” His sharp eyes darted around the room to make sure they were truly alone before he leaned over to the other man, slowly shotgunning his exhaled smoke into his lover’s mouth. Meis’ eyes fluttered shut as he breathed it in, and smiled softly as Gueira pressed a soft kiss to his parted lips.

Meanwhile, within the safety of his room, Lio found himself frustrated and pacing after his encounter with the sheriff. He lit a candle and elected to stay in his room for a while to nurse his wounded pride. He needed to gather his thoughts before working up the courage to apologize to his friends. Based on the soft, breathy sounds coming from the other part of the house, it could stand to wait until morning. Now more flustered than angry, Lio stripped off his shirt and kicked off his boots. He unbuckled his array of holsters and belts, which clinked loudly to the floor at his feet. Finally undressed enough to be comfortable, he flopped back heavily on his bed, resigned to yet another night of nothing but his thoughts for company. The mattress was straw and lumpy but it certainly beat sleeping rough again. Nestling down in his bundle of quilts, he allowed himself a deep breath. He ran his fingers through his hair in an effort to untangle the knots left by the wind. 

He was rarely allowed the luxury of privacy, and he decided to take advantage of it in an effort to blow off steam. The adrenaline from earlier had left him, but he still felt a buzz under his skin. He wondered what Galo would have done if he had allowed the situation to unfold. How far the sheriff would have gone if left unimpeded? Would he have stopped at kissing? What would those bright eyes look like with pupils blown wide with lust? Lio traced a lazy hand over his collar bone, trailing over the bud of a nipple. He let his touch wander over his chest unhurried before sliding down to palm himself over his pants. He exhaled an unsteady breath at the relief that friction brought him, letting his mind drift back to lips bitten red, the bloom of a love bite over a collarbone. How far down did that blush on his chest go? Lio wanted to know, wanted to map it over the planes of that hard body with his tongue. He was hard again at the thought of having Galo Thymos spread out before him, beneath him. Lio wanted to make a meal of him.

Shimmying his trousers down just enough to free himself, he licked his palm and began to stroke himself. What would the sheriff look like on his knees? Would he dig his heels in or would he be sweet and pliant for Lio? Lio bet that he would go down easy, eager to please and good at taking directions. Galo seemed like the kind of man that thrived on praise, who wanted to be good. Oh yes, Lio could teach him how to be good. He sped up as he worked himself over, spitting into his hand again to slick the way. Maybe, he thought, he could mark the sheriff up, raking his nails down that strong, muscled back. Bright red lines would look so lovely against that flawless expanse of Galo's bronze skin. Lio imagined dragging him by the hair to work those plush lips up and down his cock… _Fuck._ That would be beautiful. He muffled his cry with a hand over his mouth as he came, dreaming of what it would feel like to spill over Galo’s broad chest, to smear it against his skin, to swipe his fingers through the mess and feed it to him. He lay there for a moment, come cooling against his belly as he panted. He wiped himself off on a dirty shirt, and sighed deeply as he fell back against his pillow. The static beneath his skin was gone, but it was replaced with a feeling of emptiness welling up in his chest. No matter how high the peak was, no matter how good it felt, come morning? He’d still be alone. That night he slept, but got no rest.

\-----------------

Miles away, Galo played over the events of the evening in his head. Where had it gone wrong? Where had he made a mistake? He’d been so sure that he had read the situation correctly. Hell, he lacked experience in love but Lio had kissed him back. What had scared him off? Galo sat on the porch of his little house, back against the wall. He should have gone to bed a long time ago, but sleep didn’t come. He didn’t really like smoking, but he'd found himself striking a match and lighting a cigarette when he got back. He took a few drags but it just wasn’t what he was searching for. He let the paper burn down to nothing, reminiscent of the ashes he had seen Lio leave behind on the pew. Smoke spiralled silently into the night as he sat there on the porch, rolling the empty wine bottle back and forth across the floorboards, and thought of Lio. Scent was something that always caught his attention, a way of understanding the essential elements of a person without having to say a word. Lio’s scent, distinct beneath the sweat and smell of someone that had spent a lot of time in sunshine, was well-worn leather and gun oil, tobacco and campfire. He’d noticed it immediately when they had first met, as Lio had leaned close to whisper in his ear as they sat next to each other at the bar. 

Galo soon noticed that Lio drew eyes everywhere he went, some out of envy, some out of desire, some out of fear. Sometimes people did not know what to make of Lio. He was so small and seemingly innocuous, like a porcelain doll with an adder’s nest inside. He carried himself with authority and grace, his movements deliberate in a way that betrayed a calculating intelligence behind that cool demeanor. Galo knew that there were sharp rocks just beneath the surface of those waters, but he couldn’t help himself. He had always been drawn to dangerous things. Galo wanted more of Lio, to know him better. Still, he found himself torn between dedication to his job, to the mantel he’d been given, and the desires that came with being a person. Lio was the first thing to catch his eye in a long time, the first thing he’d ever wanted for himself. Still, the problem was this: Lio was a criminal, and a wanted one at that. 

Galo knew that he was taking a risk by overlooking Lio’s wanted posters every time he saw him. He’d seen the short yet informative letters left behind by the previous sheriff, detailing what they knew of the man himself and the rest of his gang. Truthfully, the reason the law was looking for him was because Lio Fotia had a penchant for doing the law’s job on his own terms. The way Galo had heard it, he’d first gained notoriety by intervening on behalf of a woman that was being beaten by her husband. Lio had stomped the man near to death in the street as his boys kept other folk from interfering, but they needn’t have bothered. The man in question was a drunk and a bully, with had far more enemies than friends. Only that town’s sheriff had a problem with what Lio had done. Charges had been brought, but Lio had managed to slip away before the law could catch up with him. 

Soon enough, Lio and his Burnish, as they called themselves, garnered a reputation as some variety of vigilante types. They dealt out punishment to those that the law would not or could not touch, but never hurt anyone that did not deserve it. The popular opinion, despite the violence and bruised knuckles, was that they were good men. Good men that you could turn to if you were in trouble, that would protect people that needed it. Their rivals, as it were, thought that this made them soft and tried to intimidate the Burnish into submission. They were always met with fire and opposition, sent packing in a way that made sure they never came back to bother anyone again. The Burnish tended to make a nuisance of themselves to the wealthy ranchers in the area, often raiding homesteads and taking supplies that would somehow magically end up in the hands of struggling farmers or the like. Sometimes, it seemed that Lio and his Burnish would steal horses and cattle just to annoy and inconvenience the local well-to-do. Still, all this activity culminated with Lio and the Burnish being chased across county lines like foxes on the run from hounds. Despite the hard life he'd surely led, Lio still looked so young. Galo found himself wondering if he was tired. Had he ever had a real home? A place to rest? Galo breathed a deep sigh, feeling exhaustion creeping over him like a fog. He finally felt like he could sleep, but it wouldn’t be long until morning came. He tried to make the best of it and slept, his mind gripped by dreams of wine-stained lips and pale hair cast gold in candlelight.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I don’t think I can stay away from him now even if he wants me to. I can’t help but want more of him. I want to know him better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to go back to work tomorrow (Jan 2) so updates will likely be a little more spaced out. I have the rest of this fic outlined, and it's currently sitting at 7 chapters plus an epilogue. 
> 
> Thank you again to everyone for their kind comments, it really does help keep me going. The encouragement helps me stay brave enough to publish my work, and I'm so happy that you all seem to be enjoying it. 
> 
> Happy New Year to all. 
> 
> \- cap

Every day after that was long, crawling by like a dog with a broken leg. As time is wont to do, long days turned into weeks that passed by slowly as winter began to rear its ugly head. The already chill winds only got colder, cutting through clothes to sear tender skin like hot iron and wrap around bone. The sky was gray and dark, matching Galo’s sour mood. The black storm clouds that had hovered over him since that night in the church did not dissipate, instead gaining strength and evolving. Galo had started to doubt if he would ever meet Lio again. He hadn’t caught word of him in town. It seemed that no one had seen him around recently, and he began to suspect that Lio was avoiding him. It ate at him that he may never know what had happened between them. He would not let it go; he had to know if Lio had felt it too, that thing, whatever it was that had passed between them like lightning. In the meantime, he had been making himself stay busy. Any spare time he had was spent doing odd jobs around town, helping out where he could, or doing repairs and maintenance on his house. Still, he found that he could not sleep.

He’d taken to walking the town at night in an effort to quiet his busy mind, uncertain as to what he was looking for. He told himself that it was an extended patrol, that he was just doing his job, but the pang of excitement and anticipation he felt when he saw a glimpse of blond hair betrayed him. He found himself at the tavern, of all places. It was not a place that he frequented but it was busy and took his mind off his own problems for a while. He’d been nursing the same drink for hours now, eyes snapping to the door every time someone new entered. He did not try to draw attention to himself, but the other patrons of the establishment had noticed that the sheriff just didn’t seem like himself lately. Several folks had come over to speak to him, only to be met with poor attempts at continuing conversation due to Galo’s distraction. He was about to resign himself to yet another night of disappointment, when he was approached by a tall, broad man with a mustache. 

“Good evening, sheriff. I apologize for making a pest of myself, but I felt you should know that someone has been lurking around the church again. Got word that they were seen not too long ago, so whoever it is may still be there.” The man spoke with the air of someone that knew more than he let on, but Galo couldn’t think about that right now. His head was buzzing with the possibility of it being Lio. The man continued, undeterred by Galo’s short attention span. “I know that the same thing happened a while back and a few things went missing around then. I figured you ought to know and see if you can’t do anything about it. It’d be a shame for anything unfortunate to happen.”

“Thank you for letting me know sir, I will head there right away.” Galo nearly knocked his table over in his rush to leave. He could just about kick himself, why the hell hadn’t he thought of going back to the church? It was so obvious. 

The gentleman that approached him did not seem to want or need a response, simply content to pass along information. Galo threw some currency on the counter and hurriedly collected his things. The man in question chuckled to himself as he watched the sheriff tumble ass over teakettle out the swinging door. 

\--------------------

Lio had not intended to end up at the little church again, and yet there he was. He sat in the same pew, trying in vain to strike a match that simply refused to light. He sighed and tipped his head back to stare up at the ceiling, lamenting the entire human condition. Moonlight filtered in through the window tonight, the colored glass washing everything in shafts of broken kaleidoscopic light. He’d thought of Galo often in the weeks that had passed between them in silence. He was certain that the sheriff’s absence from his life indicated what he already knew: that it was better for both of them if it went no further. Destruction followed Lio, whether by his own hand or by others that wanted him in prison or dead. Everything he touched would eventually burn. He could protect Galo best by staying away from him, and giving him a chance at a normal life. 

His brooding was interrupted when nearly jumped out of his skin by the church door being flung open, and Galo Thymos stomped inside. The man was breathing hard, as if he’d run there, and his breath clouded around his head as warm vapor met cool night air. Lio felt something unclench in his chest as the sheriff came to a stop just inside the door. Galo stood there for a moment, meeting Lio’s eyes. He knew that he could not charge into this in the same way he would with every other scenario. This pursuit had to be treated with care. The balance that they had struck between them, tenuous and fragile, had already suffered because of the time that had passed since they’d last met. While the metaphor conflicted with Galo’s intention, he reasoned that this was very much like a hunt. When tracking game, you needed endless patience and a steady hand. In the same way, Galo understood that it would be a long chase to catch and snare one Lio Fotia, more of a test of endurance than speed.

A line of tension still ran through Lio’s shoulders, and Galo could see that he was wound tight, skittish and ready to run if needed. Galo carefully stepped forward, closing the door softly behind him. As darkness fell over the interior of the chapel again, it took a second for his eyes to adjust to moonlight again. His footsteps echoed, an out of place drum beat, as he made his way up the aisle between pews. He decided to be overly cautious, stopping at the edge of the row where Lio sat. He pulled his gloves from each finger, stuffing them in one of his many pockets. Lio’s gaze lingered over him like a physical touch as his eyes tracked every deft movement. There was no sound but their breathing, which felt unnaturally loud in the holy quiet of the church.

Galo broke the silence first, clearing his throat. “It’s really good to see you again, Lio. Do you mind if I join you?” He had not yet considered the possibility of Lio declining his request, but the question hung in the air like smoke. Lio said nothing but acquiesced, motioning for him to sit. A cigarette lay between his lips, and Galo noticed the unlit match in his hand. Galo gently plucked it from his fingers and struck it against his boot. It flared to life, washing both of them in a dancing glow. Lio leaned into his space to shield the flame, touching Galo’s wrist with a delicate hand as he lit the cigarette and inhaled. Galo watched as Lio breathed out through his nose, his eyes closed in satisfaction. 

“Isn’t it a little late to come to pray, sheriff?” Lio’s voice was hoarse from disuse and smoke, ringing gritty and low against the stillness of the sanctuary. 

“I came for confession, actually,” Galo replied conspiratorially, hoping that the reminder of their shared joke would land. “I’ve had a lot on my mind lately.”

“I’ve heard that they don’t do that here,” Lio remarked around the cigarette hanging from his mouth.

“So you’ve said,” Galo’s laugh was wry and soft. There was little humor to it, it was a nervous sound. “Maybe you’d care to listen, then?”

“Got no other plans. I can play clergyman for an evening, I suppose.” Lio’s reply was just as dry as he searched his memory for the script that the orphanage priests had followed. He mimicked those bland monotone voices he remembered, speaking through his nose, “How long has it been since your last confession?”

“Truth be told, this is my first one.” Galo scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck as he failed to suppress a giggle, looking out into the dark. “Never felt the need for it before. I’m not even sure where to begin.”

“Is that so?” Lio dropped the voice impression, choosing instead to put on a casual air. The illusion of separation between them, the game of pretend, allowed him to relax just a fraction. “Tell me what has been troubling you, or of your sins. Dealer’s choice.”

Galo nodded his head, collecting his thoughts. He wanted to do this right. “See, I’ve met this person. I was so certain that we wanted the same thing, but I fear that I may have done something to hurt him. I…” Galo trailed off, but continued to stare straight ahead. He knew that he would lose his nerve if he looked at Lio now. “I worry he may be afraid of me.”

Lio took another drag, exhaling smoke that coiled out into the air. It danced lazily through the fractured light, moving like a living thing. “I see. Why have you come to think that?”

“When we shared a kiss, I wanted more. He ran out on me, and I don’t know why,” the sheriff looked down at his hands as they twisted together in his lap. “It’s been troubling me. I just want to understand.”

Lio’s breath was shaky. He had not expected this kind of bold honesty, this type of bleeding heart from a man that had struck him as well-meaning but foolish. There was certainly more to Galo than met the eye. “Maybe it wasn’t.... Anything you did.” Lio felt like he was going to choke on the words. “Maybe the person you are talking about has other problems. Maybe they had it all go wrong on them before... Maybe being near that person, even knowing them, is a dangerous endeavor. Maybe you would be better off walking away before things go south.”

Galo’s eyes burned as they snapped to Lio’s face, fiery and full of conviction. The veil of pretend evaporated, and gave way to something very raw and very real. “I don’t feel that way. I think that people may have the wrong impression of him.”

“You would do well to reevaluate that idea.” Lio remained stoic, his face a careful mask of neutrality as he tapped the ash from his cigarette. “You don’t know anything about this person, and yet you think so highly of him? Maybe he isn’t good, and never has been. Maybe he is exactly what everyone says he is.”

Galo’s nose wrinkled as he struggled to maintain his composure. “I don’t believe that. I think that maybe he’s tired of running and he’s looking for a place to start over.” His eyes were boring into Lio, as if trying to read his thoughts. “I think that maybe, just maybe, he could have that here. With me. I think that he just needs to be given a chance.”

Lio crossed his arms over his chest, wondering how Galo could see into him, see through him so easily when no one else had even tried to make it past the surface. “Maybe you need to change the way you think. You should stay away from him.” Lio had decided that if he was going to protect Galo from himself, then he would have to be the one to push him away. “You’d be better off hating him.”

“I don’t think I can stay away from him now even if he wants me to. I can’t help but want more of him. I want to know him better. And more than that,” Galo said seriously as he snatched the burned down cigarette from Lio. He flicked it to the floor and crushed it beneath the heel of his boot. “All I can think about is how I can get him to touch me again.” He reached out, carefully telegraphing his movement, to cup Lio’s face. His thumb traced the sharp edge of a cheekbone, the curve of Lio’s full lower lip, but the moment didn’t last. The tension shattered as Galo murmured, “I think I may be sweet on you.”

Lio gasped and jumped to his feet. Galo moved to stand too, as if to give chase, but Lio pointed at him and he settled back into his seat. “Don’t you _dare_ say that. We can try at being friends, but no more. You have a steady job and a future here. I won’t let you waste your life chasing after me. Not when you could do better.” 

This whole situation was a mess. This was a risk. This was a big fucking gamble. Could it be a trap? Lio was usually very good at sniffing out traps and traitors, but apparently Galo was his blind spot. To Lio, Galo was the fire in the blacksmith’s forge, the fire of the sun itself: too bright to look at straight on.

Galo would not be deterred. He pressed on. “I find myself very fond of you, Lio Fotia. I would like the opportunity to treat you right.” Galo was so earnest, so honest that Lio couldn’t help but be taken in. The man couldn’t lie for shit, had no ulterior motive. “Are you saying that you don’t feel it, too? If you don’t want me, I won’t chase you. All you have to do is tell me that you don’t want me and I’ll go.” 

Lio threw his hands in the air and laughed, harsh and ugly. “You should know already that I can’t do that. I’m still here, after you’ve said all that. I came here night after night, hoping for the chance to see you. If I didn’t like your company so much, you’d never see me again.” Lio sighed, tired and serious. “If I didn’t want you, I would’ve been gone the second you came through that door. But Galo, you have to understand… I’m not a person that can give you anything worth having. You should know that now.”

“Why don’t you let me decide that for myself?” Galo retorted. “I’m grown! I can handle the consequences of my actions! You have to stop trying to make decisions for me and let me choose for myself!”

Lio rubbed his temples in an effort to calm himself. “Because you’ll choose me, and you’ll choose _wrong._ You’re naive to think that I’m undamaged. No matter how I hard I try, I will eventually hurt you.” A look of defeat did not suit Lio, marring his beautiful features. Galo thought that look alone should be a crime. “You don’t know the first thing about me, but you’ve decided to risk it all on my behalf. You really are a damn fool.” 

“Goddamnit Lio, do you think I haven’t thought about this? Do you think that I haven’t thought about this exact thing every time I see one of those fucking wanted posters?” Galo’s voice rose with the passion of his words, volume filling the chapel in an ugly way. “I see those wretched things every goddamn day and I have to decide if I want to follow what it says on the paper, or what I feel is right! You want to know what I know about you? Go on, ask me what I know about the famous Lio Fotia.” Galo was on his feet now, voice echoing across the rafters and setting Lio’s teeth on edge. “Fucking ask me, Lio!”

Lio shook his head and sighed again, overcome with the distinct feeling that he was about to kick a hornet’s nest. “Tell me.”

Galo, with that self-righteous fire of someone convinced that they were right, held up one finger. “I know that your first crime, and I say that in the loosest sense of the word, was committed on behalf of someone else. You did it to protect another person. Someone who could not protect themselves. Five children still have their mother because of you. He’d surely have killed her if you hadn’t done what you did.” 

Lio stood dumbstruck as Galo raised a second finger. “Second, I know that despite what the newspapers and gossips say, have never killed anyone and never hurt anyone that didn’t have it coming to them.” He raised a third finger, on a roll now. “Third, I know that you’ve got a hideout nearby. I know that you’ve been purposely raiding outside my jurisdiction. I noticed that there had been far fewer reports and petty crimes than I expected there to be since you and yours rolled in. That is matched by an uptick in raids on surrounding towns. I can only reason to guess that that’s your doing.” 

Galo prepared to drive his point home, and held up a fourth finger. “And fourth, Lio, I’ve got letters from other lawmen. They’ve told me that after your raids, it was only dry goods to go missing. I bet that if I were to check in on the people in the shanties down the road, I’d find them there. Am I wrong?” Lio’s face was red and he was so glad that it was relatively dark in the chapel. He was embarrassed at being so brazenly humbled by this silly man, this person he’d called a fool not minutes before. Galo was not a fool. Well, that was not entirely true. He was trusting and a bit naive for believing in the innate good of people, but he really did not miss much. He was good at his job, Lio could not deny that. “Am I wrong, Lio?” The sheriff would not be ignored.

“There are things about me that aren’t in any fucking records, Galo!” Lio tried to cover up that Galo had struck a nerve by half-heartedly lashing out, but the fight had left him. “You’d do well to remember that.”

“Then you will just have to talk to me and explain things like a fucking adult!” Galo waved his arms in frustration, before throwing his hands up in exasperation. “Lio… If I was going to arrest you, don’t you think I’d have done it by now?” Galo eyed him meaningfully, as if the answer should be obvious. But damn, wasn’t that the million dollar question? He had a point. At first, Lio had thought that the sheriff was letting him get comfortable in an effort to sniff out his other connections, or perhaps he just hadn’t recognized Lio. The descriptions of him on the posters were rather vague and drawings weren’t exactly common. It was clear that Galo had made a choice, and he had decided to get to know him and judge Lio’s character for himself. 

“I just…” Lio shrugged his shoulders in a defeated gesture. He looked tired. Deep circles were etched under his eyes, and Galo wished he could wipe them away. Lio would not face him completely yet, still struggling in his search for words. “I just think that you deserve someone that can touch you without hurting you. That won’t disappoint you. Someone that you can touch without them flinching away.”

“You’re the one that told me about people being made different. Seems to me that this can be considered just another shade of different.” Galo stepped closer, still giving him space, but close enough that Lio could either walk away or reach out and touch him if he wanted to. “Let me help you build a new life,” he asked. It wasn’t a request. It was an offer in the form of a key to a locked door, a lifeline. “Let me be good to you.”

Lio was quiet for a long time before turning to face Galo, he sighed in defeat. “Against my better judgment, I find that I am also very fond of you. Do you think…” he began but hesitated. Galo gave him his complete attention, staring at him as if there was nothing worth looking at. Galo nodded, encouraging him to continue. “Do you think that I could have a chance at that?”

Galo looked momentarily confused. “A chance at what?”

Lio swallowed, ready to square up to the world. “A chance at starting over.”

A slow smile spread over Galo’s face and it was like the glare of sunlight on snowfall, blinding and bright. It wasn’t the grand gesture or confession of love he had hoped for, but it would do for now. “Yes, Lio,” he murmured, reaching out to brush Lio’s hair behind his ear. “I really think you could.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It began like prayer, with a few hushed words and Galo on his knees.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did somebody ask for porn? Because this is just porn. 
> 
> Thank you again to everyone for reading and commenting. This will likely undergo minor revisions for grammar and spelling in the next day or so.
> 
> Anyway this fic decided it wanted to have a real plot so... stay tuned. 
> 
> Updates will likely slow down a bit as I am writing my dissertation at the moment, but I still plan regular updates!

Winter faded to spring and the growing season came on like a slow-opening bloom, unfolding petal by petal as the days grew longer. Lio had been rather scarce for a while when the snow had been at its worst, and Galo had carried on his habit of helping on farms that needed an extra set of hands. He’d been running himself ragged, working from sunup until long past dark every day. He was tired, but it felt good to be useful. There were still long periods of time where Lio disappeared, but with the advent of warmer weather, Galo had often come home at the end of the day to find the man already in his house, dirty boots propped up on the table. He stopped repairing the window after a while, coming to terms with the fact that Lio would jimmy it open anyway. For some reason, the man seemed to have a personal grudge against using doors like a normal person, instead preferring to break in. Galo supposed that he took it as a challenge. Still, it was nice to come home to a fire already lit and Lio, to this thing that was growing between them. 

Most of the nights that they spent together were whiled away deep in conversation, simply enjoying each other’s company. Galo came to learn a lot about Lio that way and came to understand his hesitance. It had been far too long since Lio had been touched with the intent to give pleasure instead of inflict pain. They talked about scars, about old wounds and new. Lio showed him the since-healed scar on his palm from that first night in the chapel, now faded to silvery pink with new skin. There were times where Lio did not want to talk, choosing instead to sit shoulder to shoulder on Galo’s old bed and simply revel in his presence. Those were the nights were Galo did most of the talking, telling stories of his friends, of his early days as a young deputy, of his family and his youth. Lio would always smile softly and sadly, then kiss him goodnight. That was the only constant: Lio did not stay. When the evening grew late and Galo drifted off to sleep, he would always wake to find Lio gone. Galo had come to notice an empty space in his home, in his bed, that was in the shape of Lio when he was not there. Other nights, though… Other nights were spent wrapped up in each other.

The tension between them never seemed to truly subside, and they often ended up in a tangle of limbs. Still, it had not progressed past heated kisses, a war of tongues and teeth as they fought each other for dominance. In the many nights they would grind against each other to chase relief, Lio knew that he wanted more but his mind warred with him. When Galo would lie beneath him panting and writhing, his interest hard and pressing against Lio’s thigh, Lio would feel that same flush of anxiety, of trepidation and fear. It always ended before it progressed much further than hands wandering over chests, never straying below the belt. Galo, despite his inexperience, had tried to urge Lio on but he’d been met with resistance. Lio had snatched his wandering hands away by the wrist and pinned them above his head, which was a very different kind of exciting and did nothing to stop Galo from begging and pleading for Lio to lavish him with more attention.

Tonight, was different, though. Tonight, Lio felt brave and he felt ready, and he would finally take what he wanted. The waiting had gone on long enough, and he could not escape Galo even in his dreams. He’d long outgrown the age at which wet dreams were common, but the flashing images of a mouth open on a moan, a red bruise sucked against the column of a thick neck, along with a myriad of other sensual fantasies that ran rampant in Lio’s mind. More often than not, he would wake up hard and wanting, rutting against his pillow to chase his release. Tonight, Lio could not help himself. He needed more, and he would have it.

Galo groaned in satisfaction as Lio’s teeth worried at his shoulder, the collar of his shirt hanging open and pushed aside. Their clothes had fallen into disarray as they moved against each other, rough denim of their trousers suffocating and constricting. Galo was eager and rough, his big hands wrapping around Lio’s narrow waist so tightly that his fingers could almost touch. “Lio,” Galo threw his head back and gasped as Lio licked a hot stripe over his Adam’s apple. “Please.” He did not know what he was asking for, but he needed more than this.

“Please, what? Use your words, Galo,” Lio teased with a smirk. He was just as frantic as his lover, but he was better at hiding it. He’d been dreaming of laying Galo out beneath him, mapping his skin with his palms, and using his tongue to taste the salt of him and trace every scar and freckle. Still, there was the matter of pride in these matters. Lio could not and would not give up control. They had not fully discussed it, but it had to be said before they could progress.

“I want you,” Galo uttered, somewhere between a curse and a plea. His eyes were glazed over as he rolled his hips against Lio in his search for friction. “Please, Lio, please touch me.”

Lio sat up and pushed Galo’s hair out of his face with a serious expression. “I want more of you, Galo Thymos. I want you terribly and desperately, but I have some requests.” Lio casually plucked at Galo’s nipple through his shirt.

“Anything, I’ll do anything, but _fuck_ , don’t you dare take your hands off of me.” Galo cried out in pleasure as Lio’s hands tangled in his hair and wrenched his head back to talk low and mean in his ear.

“You’d do anything? Is that a promise?” Lio slowly unbuttoned his shirt, chasing each new inch of exposed skin with wet, open-mouthed kisses. Galo’s tan had faded in the winter months, but he still stood out bronze and beautiful in comparison to Lio’s milky skin. Lio felt the burn of promise and desire coil hot in his belly. 

\----------------------------

It began like prayer, with a few hushed words and Galo on his knees. Lio stood in front of him, towering over him like a young god as Galo gazed up at him with hope and reverence from his place on the floor. He was bound with his wrists behind his back, restrained in place with his own shirtsleeves. A bead of sweat rolled down his chest, and Lio followed it with a barely-there touch. He withdrew right before his finger would have reached the sprinkling of hair below Galo’s navel, where it disappeared beneath the waist of his trousers. “Do you remember the rules we discussed?” Lio asked, nudging the inside of Galo’s thigh with the pointed toe of his boot. He needed to know that they understood each other after their earlier conversation. Galo had no experience in the realm of physical intimacy, so the responsibility fell to Lio. Galo always went on about wanting to be good to him, and Lio wanted to be good to him in return. He had to make sure that this was what they both wanted before moving forward.

“Yes, Lio.” Galo’s attention was unwavering, and Lio felt unworthy of such worship. 

“Tell me what they are, so I know that we’re clear,” Lio murmured as he cupped Galo’s face in both hands. 

“Tell you if I want to stop,” Galo leaned into Lio’s touch as he ran his fingers through Galo’s hair. “Don’t use my hands unless you ask for it.” He hummed in pleasure as fingers gently scratched at his scalp. “Don’t come without permission.” 

Lio bent to press a kiss to Galo’s lips, and the bigger man writhed against his bindings in his eagerness as he praised him, “Good boy. Now be good to me.”

The mattress sagged a bit as Lio reclined on Galo’s narrow bed, and beckoned Galo over with a curl of his finger. Galo knee-walked himself over the thin rug and onto the bed to rest between Lio’s spread thighs. Frantic energy rolled off him in waves as he looked down at Lio with intense and focused eyes. Lio leaned forward, trailing feather-light fingers over Galo’s collarbone, over the swell of his chest, to brush over a peaked nipple. It was cold in the house despite the fire, and Galo’s skin rippled as a shiver washed over him. The pads of Lio’s fingers circled the nub, tweaking and teasing it to hardness. Galo moaned softly at the sensation, and Lio wanted to swallow the sounds so that no one else could ever have them. The sheriff, bound up as he was, still could not be still. His hips rocked of their own accord, searching for friction. He groaned as his efforts were fruitless, the constriction of his trousers insufficient to provide any meaningful relief. 

Lio leaned down, walking his delicate fingers up the closure of Galo’s pants. He dragged a single digit up and down the prominent ridge of Galo’s hard length, drawing a shiver and low whine from the other man. He hesitated for a moment, pressing up close to lean his forehead to Galo’s. “Tell me that you want this. I need to know that you have thought it through.”

“Lio, I swear to Jesus Christ that if you do not touch me, I will keel over and die.” Galo was trying so hard to maintain eye contact, going slightly cross-eyed with their foreheads still pressed together. “I have wanted you since we met. I may not know exactly what that means, but I want you to teach me.”

Lio smiled at that, pressing a soft peck to his lips. “Remember my rules, Galo Thymos. If you break them, this stops, and I leave.”

“Understood,” Galo replied as pulled back and nodded his head, narrowly avoiding bonking his skull against Lio’s. “...Sir.”

Lio would sooner die than admit it, but his dick, which had been just starting to stir, had come to full attention at Galo’s use of the title. Lio went back to stroking over Galo’s chest again. It was just so distracting; how did he manage to build so much muscle there? He cupped them in his small hands, and they spilled over. “Look at these, I bet there are girls in town that are jealous of your tits.” Galo flushed and tried to hide his face in embarrassment, but Lio continued to knead his chest as one hand firmly gripped the other man’s chin. “Prettiest tits I’ve ever seen, without a doubt. Do you like it when I call them that? I’d wager that you play with them when you touch yourself, don’t you? I expect an answer, Galo.” He took one pink nipple into his mouth, relishing the soft gasp that fell from Galo’s lips. He circled the bud with his tongue, feeling it firm up further under his ministrations. “Galo, I expect an answer. Don’t you want to be good for me?” 

Galo whimpered and nodded frantically, unable to keep from squirming where he still knelt between Lio’s legs. He could not decide if he wanted to press into the touch and soak up the attention, or if he wanted to hide under the bed to escape from the constant stream of filth that seemed to spill from Lio’s mouth. The humiliation of having his chest referred to in such a way made him want to run away, but Lio’s touch felt so good. He wanted more. God, he wanted more. When Lio pushed him onto his back, he went easily. Lio followed him down, sucking a red mark into the side of his neck that would blossom into a purple bruise. Lio’s teeth closed around the curve of collar bone, the first in a series of sharp little nips that led down the curve of his pectoral. Closing his mouth over Galo’s nipple, he worried the bud between his teeth as Galo gasped for breath above him. Lio loved to take his time, but the desire to break Galo down into a million little pieces was overwhelming. His heart did a strange little twist when he realized that he also wanted to be the one to put him back together.

The pale iris of Lio’s eyes were slivers, pupils blown wide as he took in the feast laid out before him before his deft fingers made short work of the buttons of Galo’s trousers. “Oh, you are just perfect. Look at you. I’ve never seen anything prettier,” Lio murmured, grinning like something feral as he stripped the sheriff of his remaining clothing. Laid bare in the golden glow of firelight, Galo looked cast in bronze. Every muscle was cast in sharp relief as his skin prickled from the cold air of the room and the crushing weight of Lio’s gaze. “Christ,” Lio whispered to himself, struck with awe for a moment. Lio did not know much about art, but he knew beauty when he saw it. Galo was not beautiful in the way that paintings or sculptures were beautiful, but instead like untouched snow on the side of a silent mountain. He was beautiful like a pastel sky was beautiful, as sunlight filtered through trees while the day faded. 

Galo lay before him, hard and wanting, with his hands bound behind his back because that was what Lio had wanted. Lio needed to show his gratitude. He kissed his way down Galo’s taut belly, as the firm muscles quivered beneath his touch. Galo’s dick lay full and heavy, twitching as Lio gave kitten licks along his Adonis belt and rubbed gentle circles into his hip bones. Galo was making little sounds, trying so hard to be still as Lio slowly traversed the planes of his body. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Lio arrived at Galo’s groin. Clear fluid beaded at the dark head of his dripping cock, and Lio’s tongue darted out to taste it. He raked gentle nails up his lover’s spread and quivering thighs. He ran a finger up the thick vein on the underside of Galo’s erection, and Galo gasped as he was touched in such an intimate place for the first time.

“Look at you, all spread out and waiting so patiently for me,” Lio murmured, circling his finger over the leaking slit. “You’re so hard already, and I’ve barely touched you.” With an evil smirk, he wrapped his hand around Galo fully. Lio knew that he was rather petite, but he couldn’t even close his fingers around Galo. It looked obscene in his hand as he stroked him slowly from base to tip. He teased at that sensitive spot just below the head with his tongue, watching Galo’s chest rise and fall faster with each sensation. “Now, hush and let me take care of you.”

Galo shouted as Lio’s mouth closed over the head of his cock for the first time, fighting against the innate urge to thrust into that wet heat. Lio hollowed his cheeks as he started to take Galo deeper, humming in satisfaction as Galo looked down at him with wide, shocked eyes. Sweat beaded on his forehead and his upper lip, evidence of the strain he was placing on himself in his effort to be still.

“Oh fuck, oh God!” Galo moaned, throwing his head back as his member was completely enveloped in the constriction of Lio’s mouth. He would never fit all the way inside, he was just too big, but Lio’s lips stretched around him looked profane in the best possible way. He wished he could bury his fingers in that downy blond hair, but he knew that Lio needed it this way. He clenched and unclenched his hands where they lay beneath him, trying to keep them from going numb under his weight. Lio was picking up the pace, stroking his shaft in tandem with his bobbing head. Galo could feel that coiling pressure starting to wind tighter low in his belly, and he knew he wouldn’t last long. Lio pressed on, taking Galo into his throat as he struggled to swallow around him. 

“I’m going to come, Lio, oh fuck I’m going to come-” Galo’s pleasure began to crest, the white-hot crackle of energy that came with climax starting to run up his spine, and suddenly-

Lio stopped. He pulled off and away, looking down at Galo where he lay. His grin was bright and wicked as Galo gave a plaintive wail and thrust his hips against nothing. He was so close, and Lio had taken it away from him!

“I told you, Galo. We were just getting started.” Lio leaned forward to press a kiss to his sweaty cheek. “If you can’t take it, you know what you need to do. We talked about the rules.”

Galo whined again, frustrated at being stopped short of the finish line. “I can take it, I swear, please sir, I can take it!” He forced himself into stillness, every muscle tense, every tendon taut. His erection had not waned in the slightest, he needed more. He would die if Lio did not give him more.

Lio gave him a few more seconds to calm down before settling back down between Galo’s spread legs. He spit into his palm, slicking up Galo’s shaft before stroking it again, excruciatingly slow. His grip was tight, almost painfully slow, and it was not enough. He worked his tongue over the head, pressing hard against the frenulum and lapping yet more fluid from the slit. He began to stroke Galo a little faster, feeling the tension in his partner’s muscles coil even tighter as he took him into his mouth again. Lio went on this way, slowly increasing his pace until Galo began to tremble, shaking beneath him. Tears had started to pool in the corners of Galo’s eyes, and it gave Lio a slight sadistic thrill to see him so debauched. “Please, Sir, go faster. Please, I need it, please go faster! I’m so close, please let me come!” Galo begged; he was beyond shame as a white-hot comet burned in the pit of his belly. Lio pulled off Galo with a pop, and grinned as he took away sensation again. Galo shouted at the ceiling, cursing both God and Lio alike, as he was robbed of yet another chance at orgasm. 

Lio gentled him with petting strokes to his stomach and thighs, soothing him with gentle shushing sounds. “You’re doing so well, look at you, you’re making me so happy. Can you hang on a little longer? You’re almost there, I promise.” Lio continued to pet Galo as he writhed, fighting off waves of sensation that seized him when Lio’s breath ghosted over his aching cock. 

Galo sobbed at the prospect of being left like this and drew in a shaky breath. “Please, Lio, I need you…” He was absolutely wrecked, his sweaty hair clinging to his forehead as he strained against the shirt that bound him. 

“I’ve got you, you’ve been so good to me,” Lio dropped little kisses against Galo’s fevered skin, licking his palm and taking Galo in hand again. Galo cried out again at the touch, over-sensitive and sore. He had not been touched like this before, but Lio had ruined him. Nothing would ever be this good or this beautifully torturous again. No one would ever be Lio’s equal. Lio began to suck him again, sloppier and wetter than before as he sensed Galo’s desperation. Galo’s breath hitched and he writhed, but Lio kept stroking him, kept working him over until all he could do was feel. The pace escalated to a fever pitch until the tension in him finally snapped like an overstretched spring when Lio quietly gave the command, "Come for me." 

All he could say was Lio's name as he spilled all over his chest and belly, some of his spend splashing hot against Lio’s lips and chin. It was the most pornographic thing that Galo had ever seen, and it was seared into his mind forever. Lio, smirking with all the satisfaction of a cat in cream, darted his pink tongue out to lick off the mess. Galo thought he might faint. Lio eased Galo onto his side to free his hands and wiped his face on the dirty shirt before using it to gently wipe away the mess from Galo’s sweat-slick skin. Galo lay scooted under the covers, naked and sleepy, and did childish grabby hands to beckon Lio back to bed. Lio did come back, laying rigid as Galo wrapped his arms around him. Galo drifted off to sleep, mumbling something against Lio’s hair. Lio pretended he could not understand what he’d said. It was easier that way. 

\----------------------------

Come morning, Galo woke to an empty bed and a fire that had burned to cold ash and embers. He felt satisfied in a way that made his bones feel soft, but it stung that Lio did not stay. He knew that he should not expect anything more, because that was who Lio was, but still. It hurt his pride. He forced himself out of the warmth of his covers and into his clothes. He desperately needed to wash that shirt. He reached for his gun belt, and a small, folded piece of paper fluttered out of the holster. He unfolded it, and it contained a simple sentence, written in spidery handwriting.

 _I'll be home again soon._ _\- L_

Galo smiled, fond and secret, before folding the note back up and tucking it into his shirt pocket.

\----------------------------

Somewhere across the ridge, a rider stepped out of his tent into the early morning light. A bounty was waiting to be claimed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lio goes home.  
> Galo goes to dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter put up quite a fight, but I finally got it finished. It will undergo further proofreading when I've had some sleep.  
> I apologize if there are any typos or grammatical mistakes, I will fix them ASAP.
> 
> As usual, your comments keep me going and help me maintain the courage to write!  
> \- cap

Lio had woken with a start before long before sunrise, and the aftermath of whatever forgotten nightmare he had dreamt refused to let him rest any further. He suddenly felt trapped and restless in the small house beneath the weight of Galo’s sleep-warm body, and he needed to be alone. Besides, he’d been away from the others for too long, and they were sure to come looking for him if he did not return. He wanted to keep this one good thing for himself, to keep Galo away from the rest of his world. He needed to go. His thoughts had carried him away, but he found himself standing at the door. His resolve cracked a bit and he went back to press a soft kiss to Galo’s forehead. The big man stirred and curled into himself, hand reaching out into the space where Lio had been. Lio smiled affectionately and scribbled the little note on a spare slip of paper before letting himself out into the pre-dawn day. 

He needed to retrieve his horse and his other belongings that were hidden nearby. It was rather difficult to find the trail he’d made that led back to the Burnish hideout in the dark, as the way was long and wound through dense brush. His choice was not purely one of self-preservation, but also one of vanity. He had no interest in encountering other people on the road this morning, clearly disheveled and exhausted as he was. His horse greeted him with a snuffle and lipped at his hair, leaving it standing at strange angles. He laughed as she butted against him with her nose, and he gave her a scratch before undoing the tether. He swung himself up into the saddle with a smooth motion and made off for the house. On the trail he had cut for himself, he spent the morning in peaceful solitude heading away from town. He decided he had to tell his associates what he had been up to.

\----------------------------

The morning drifted by in a humid haze, with the start of summer dipping its toes in to test the water. Galo spent the time seeing to repairs on the jailhouse and the church. He was good with his hands, and when he was not seeing to his own affairs, he was often hired out on other jobs or offered his assistance of his own accord. He found that he could no longer set foot in the church without thinking of Lio. It wasn’t a place of worship anymore, or at least not the kind of worship that was intended. Then again, Galo had never really been the kind to praise something that he could not see or touch. Still, the day whiled by, creeping along like the slow-winding honeysuckle that tried to reclaim the walls of his house every year. He made a mental note that he should trim them back soon, before they worked their way into the wood again. It was just before midday when Galo stood bent over, replacing a rotted out board on the jailhouse floor when a series of loud, sharp knocks on the door caused him to startle. He jumped to his feet, banging his head on a low shelf as he did. Scowling and rubbing the back of his skull as he answered the door, he was greeted with the sight of a woman standing there, hand on her hip and an annoyed look on her face.

“Galo Thymos, where in the hell have you been? You haven’t been by for dinner in damn near a month.” Aina pointed an accusing finger in his face. “Who else’s cooking have you been eating?” She looked _furious_. For someone to turn down an invitation to her dinner was the equivalent of a husband stepping out on his wife. She simply would not tolerate it.

Galo’s face immediately flushed red, thoroughly chastised. He took off his hat and held it in his hands, looking as sorry for himself as he could. “I sincerely apologize, Miss Aina, I’ve been very busy doing other things, what with summer coming and all, and I just haven’t had the time.”

“Haven’t had the time, my foot! I don’t buy that for a goddamn minute. You practically fall off the face of the earth, and you expect me to just take an apology for it? That’s _bull_ , Mister Thymos and you know it.” She crossed her arms over her chest, reminding him so very much of his mother in that moment that it made Galo’s head spin. 

“If you wouldn’t mind, I’d be happy to come by one evening this week, say in the next few days?” He posed the question with a sheepish smile, like a child trying to weasel out of trouble. 

“I expect you to be present at our table tonight. Seven o’clock. Don’t you dare be late.” She wagged a finger in his face again, and he could not escape. “And if you are late, I will have your head, don’t you dare think you can get out of this! Anyway, it’s past time for me to be heading back now. I expect to see you soon.” She raised a pointed eyebrow, an unspoken threat on his very life. 

“Yes ma’am, I would not miss it for the world,” Galo replied, smiling brightly. Miss Aina Ardebit could put the fear of God into anybody and may the Lord help anyone who dared to cross her. She turned on her heel and left Galo there on the steps of the jail house, hat in hand, feeling like he’d been thoroughly bullied. 

\-------------------------- 

Lio returned to the Burnish house in the early afternoon, sweaty and weary. He felt better than he had that morning, the anxiety that had begun to build in his chest quieted to near nothing. He let himself into the house, and found his companions quietly bickering and elbowing each other as they worked together over a cooking fire in the cramped kitchen area. Something was simmering away in a cast iron pot, and Lio felt a rush of affection for the two men that had spent so much time with him. He had yet to apologize for his snappish behavior when he’d come home after the incident with Galo in the church. Now that particular bitch of a chicken had come home to roost, and Lio knew that he had to swallow his pride. “What are you making?” He asked, trying to keep his tone casual and unassuming. 

“Boss,” Meis acknowledged him without looking up from where he stared intently into the stew. “Nice of you to grace us with your presence.” Lio could sense that those words held extra meaning. Meis was not one to give away his emotions, always playing his feelings close to his chest, but the way his shoulders relaxed at hearing Lio’s voice was not to be missed.

Gueira, on the other hand, was no master of subtlety and cut to the chase. “Where the fuck were you? We haven’t seen hide nor hair of you in _days_! It isn’t like you to just leave like this, and it’s happening more and more often. Are you stupid, or just reckless?” Gueira’s attempt at looming over Lio was not as intimidating as he hoped it would be, given that he had gone teary eyed and was barely holding back crying in relief at seeing Lio home and in one piece. He wrapped his arms around Lio in a crushing hug, lifting the smaller man off of his feet. Lio could not help but kick his legs in the air like a child as he struggled to flail his way out of Gueira’s grip, indignant and thoroughly ruffled.

When the brief moment of levity passed, all three men looked at each other, uncertain of what to say next. Lio finally broke the stalemate, placing a hand on each man’s shoulder. “There is something important I would like to discuss with the both of you. Can we sit?” he said, motioning toward the little nest of blankets that still sat in front of the fireplace. They still had no furniture to speak of aside from the rough chairs and table that they sometimes ate at, but it felt too formal for this. His lieutenants shared a glance and then nodded, following Lio to sit down all together in the blanket pile. 

Lio tried to delay the inevitable conversation by working at the lacings of his boots. He sighed, feeling the heavy weight of the other men’s eyes on him. They watched him carefully, but Lio still hesitated, wringing his hands. Gueira leaned to one side, rummaging through the blanket nest like a dog digging in the dirt. He surfaced shortly after, grinning with glee when he fished out his prize: a brown glass bottle. He passed it to Lio who opened the stopper and waved it in front of his nose. It was absolutely foul and smelled vaguely poisonous, but Lio sighed. He had decided that it was now or never, so he knocked back a swig of Gueira’s mystery booze. Besides, if the liquor killed him, then maybe he could avoid the situation entirely. Meis waved his hand in a circle to motion for Lio to begin.

He had thought about his little speech the whole way home, but still he did not feel ready for this conversation. It was now or never, and he was doing these men a disservice by keeping them out of the loop and not trusting them to have his back. “I’m certain that you are aware that I haven’t quite… been myself lately,” he began lamely. He was greeted with soft snorts of laughter as if to say, _that’s putting it mildly_. “It’s because I’ve been… Um. I’ve been,” Lio hesitated again, knowing that he was blushing and there was nothing he could do about it. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. “I’ve been seeing someone. In town. For a while now. I thought it was about time that you should know.”

“Is that so?” Meis asked, smirking. He was the kind of person that enjoyed watching others squirm, and it was normally very difficult to make Lio uncomfortable. This was a rare treat. “Are you going to tell us more about your secret sweetheart, or are we supposed to guess?”

“Well, they have steady work and are well-liked by others. They are very kind to me…” Lio desperately searched for the careful words that would let him tiptoe around the reality of who his lover was. “They are rather... important in town, and that’s why we’ve been keeping it a secret.” He rummaged through Meis’ abandoned cigarette case, taking one for his own. Gueira also snatched another fresh one, sticking his tongue out at the former owner of his prize.

“Are they good looking?” Mei asked, frowning at his friends’ blatant theft. He would make them roll him more later to make up for it.

“If they’re letting you court them, they’ve got to be ugly as sin,” Gueira teased, playfully pinching Lio’s side before passing him a match. “Gotta be as big as a barn, and twice as full of shit, I’d wager!” He found himself very funny and barked out guffawing laughter at his own joke.

Lio, ever the honorable and chivalrous type, rose to the bait immediately, all thoughts of tobacco abandoned. “I’ll have you know that they are _very_ handsome! Far more handsome than the likes of you!” he snapped, flicking the unlit cigarette at his friend, hitting him square in the forehead.

“Handsome, you said?” Gueira prodded, grinning wide again as he rubbed the red mark that the cigarette had left behind. “Handsome? Not beautiful, not lovely? Not fair or fine? Handsome, he says?” He looks pointedly at Meis, who nods sagely in response as he rescues Lio’s abandoned cigarette from Gueira’s lap.

Lio mentally kicked himself; he had not seen the trap coming. His companions were clever and were always able to ferret out the truth no matter how hard Lio sometimes tried to hide it. He threw up his hands, red-faced and fed up. “Handsome could describe any kind of person! What are you implying?”

“But it’s a fella that you’re sweet on, right?” Gueira continued, grinding out his old burned down cigarette onto the floorboard, and raising an eyebrow at Lio as he tossed the butt away. Meis smacked him on the back of the head, reprimanding him for making a mess of their house. 

Lio buried his face in his hands. They had never had a conversation about this sort of thing before, ever. He knew that his lieutenants had _something_ going on between them, but none of them had addressed it outright. It was best for all to just mind their own business wherever private affairs were concerned. Things were easier that way. But now… Lio had found someone that he was serious about. He’d found someone that he may one day want to introduce to the men that he thought of as brothers, the only family he’d ever had.

“Come on, you can tell us,” Gueira encouraged, yawning as he leaned back against the wall.

Lio sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “Yes, I’ve been seeing a man. He’s… popular around town and he’s the kind of person that we, given our chosen profession, would go out of our way to avoid. That’s all I am willing to tell you.”

Meis reclined back on the blankets, stretching his arms up and folded them behind his head before laying his feet in Gueira’s lap. “Oh, we’ve known for months that you’ve been fucking the sheriff. We just wanted to make you say it," he said, as plain as day, casual as always. “You aren’t exactly as sneaky as you think you are.” He took a deep drag on his smoke and exhaled a cloud of smoke toward the ceiling.

Gueira looked at Lio quizzically before asking, “Was that supposed to be a secret?” His new cigarette hung between his lips, and Meis leaned forward to light his own from the cherry. He took a deep drag on his smoke and exhaled toward the ceiling.

Lio felt like steam was coming out of his ears and he tried to recover whatever semblance or shred of dignity he could by puffing up like an offended cat and hissing, “I am not _fucking_ the _goddamn sheriff, Gueira._ ”

“That sounds eerily like something that a person who’s fucking the sheriff would say,” Meis remarked drily, his voice slightly muffled by the smoke hanging between his lips. Gueira snorted hard at that, and ended up sending himself into a coughing fit as he choked on his own saliva. Meis smacked him hard on the back, his face purposely blank as he held back laughter of his own.

“I swear to _God_ , I will burn this house to the ground,” Lio threatened, but it rang hollow as he curled up into a ball, tucking his burning face into his knees as his friends enjoyed laughter at his expense.

“It’s alright, boss.” Meis reassured him, patting his shoulder. “I guess we should come clean, too. We’ve been rather social as well, and since we are all being honest and what have you, you should probably know that I’m fucking your lieutenant.”

Gueira also patted Lio on his shoulder as he said somberly, “I have terrible news, boss. I am also fucking your lieutenant.”

Lio’s shoulders began to shake at that, as he broke into laughter that was so manic with relief that it nearly sounded crazed. He flopped back onto the blankets, and they all settled down together. They lay together like puppies, like they did when they were young. Lio had never known a home outside of this right here, the comfort and safety that came with the presence of his friends. He had spent so much time fretting, and for what reason? He should have known it would all be alright.

As to be expected, Gueira ruined the pleasant moment by leaning close to Lio’s ear. “So, what is the sheriff like in the sack?” he asked, smoke flooding out of his mouth and tickling Lio’s nose as he spoke. Lio Fotia, the bane of law enforcement, convicted felon, a notorious and wanted criminal, shrieked like a schoolgirl and tried to smother his friend with a pillow.

\----------------------------

Galo trudged his way up to the door of the Ardebit farmhouse and knocked on the wooden door frame. He had known the sisters, Heris and Aina, since he had been sent the town as their new sheriff, and they had been friends ever since. They had been left the house and all its property by their late father and had done a damn good job of keeping it going. Heris, the elder sister, was a brilliant accountant and was responsible for all the finances. Aina, the younger of the two, was a savvy businesswoman and managed the farm day-to-day. She initially had romantic designs on Galo, but soon realized that he was far too oblivious and free-spirited to make a good partner for her. She had apparently spent months chasing him and dropping hints, all of which went over his head. It culminated in her spelling it out, and Galo explaining that he only thought of her as a friend. They decided that it was best for both of them, and they carried on as if nothing had ever happened. She still went out of her way to pester Galo, regularly forcing him to come for supper and to browbeat him into repairing things around the property. Aina was a little rough around the edges, sarcastic and forceful at times, but she was soft in the middle. Galo knew that she genuinely cared for him, and anyone that had Aina Ardebit as their friend was a very lucky person.

Heris greeted him at the door. Contrary to the usual style, she wore her hair cut short. Spectacles took up most of her face, and she often hid behind them. She was forever shy, still blushing when Galo greeted her even after all these years, ducking her head as she stood aside to beckon him in.

“Good evening, Miss Heris. You look very pretty today,” Galo beamed, removing his hat and hanging it on a hook by the door. “Would you like my boots on or off this evening?” Heris was very particular about the state of the house, Aina had explained to him once. She had a particular way of doing things, and it made it difficult for her to be in an unfamiliar space. She spent a lot of time at home, so Galo always sought to accommodate her needs.

“Off please,” she said quietly. “You can place them there.” She pointed at the usual designated spot and hurried off into the house. Galo was used to this by now and smiled fondly as he set his boots down, careful to avoid leaving a mess of dirt or mud. He followed the sound of Aina chattering away, winding up in the kitchen.

“Galo! Thank you for joining us, I was wondering if you’d show up!” Aina said, pointing at him with the knife she’d been using to carve a chicken. “Come meet our guest. We’ve taken on a lodger.” She waved the knife over toward a man who sat casually draped across a kitchen chair. 

Galo’s eyes narrowed, overcome with the feeling that he’d met this man before. The stranger looked like he’d been carved out of the side of a mountain. He was truly enormous, broad chested and heavily muscled, formidable and intimidating. Galo himself was by no means a small person, but this man made Galo look like a weedy teenager by comparison. The man’s fair hair was dusted red with dirt from the road, and his eyes carried a glint that Galo did not recognize. The stranger stood up from his chair and offered Galo his hand. Galo looked at the big paw that was offered and hesitated for a second before taking it. 

“Pleasure to meet you, sheriff. I’ve heard a lot about you from these lovely ladies,” the stranger smiled down at Galo, but it did not touch his eyes. The handshake went on too long and the man’s grip was too firm, and Galo was bewildered by this person’s bizarre behavior. 

“Gentlemen, shall we sit?” Aina had been busying herself with moving food to the table, and sheep dogging her sister into setting places for everyone. Galo ended up at the head of the table, across from the strange guest while the sisters sat in their usual places across from each other. Food was passed around and plates were served without much conversation, but Aina was never one to let silence go uninterrupted.

“So, Mister Foresight, what brings you to our little town?” Aina began, leading with the question before digging into her meal.

“Work,” Foresight replied. “I have business to attend to here.”

“And what kind of business do you do? If you don’t mind me asking, that is,” Aina asked. She gave Galo a pointed look, but he was far too busy making a mess of his dinner to notice. She kicked him under the table, and he yelped, nearly spitting out his bite of beans. 

“Yes, I am quite curious myself,” Galo encouraged, after he had finished choking. He went back to his meal, scowling at Aina. She looked very pleased with herself.

Foresight smiled crookedly as he wiped his greasy fingers off on his dirty pants. “I’m in the business of law enforcement, although not in the same way as you, sheriff.”

Aina looked surprised, her eyebrows climbing high on her forehead. “Is that so? What kind of law enforcement?” She did not look up from her plate where she was working at carving a stubborn piece of meat with a dull table knife. 

“I wear many hats, sheriff, Miss Aina. Right now, I am here because I heard a rumor that the Burnish were headed out this way. I’d hoped to pick up their trail again.”

Galo’s stomach felt like it was going to fall out of his body, but he managed not to react. “The Burnish? I’ve not had any problems with them. You must be mistaken.”

The big man looked up and met Galo’s eyes, that strange glint back in his gaze. “I’m afraid I’m not mistaken. I tracked them here, and I was hoping that you might be able to point me in the right direction.” 

Galo schooled his face into neutrality, hoping to God that his heartbeat was not as audible to the others in the room. It felt like it was pounding so loud that it might deafen him. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” He stabbed his fork into the last bite of chicken, shoveling it into his mouth.

“You seem to know the people in your town very well, sir. You’re close to a lot of people, are you not?” Foresight cocked his head to the side, looking very much like a snake, coiled and ready to strike him should he misstep. "Friends close, enemies closer, and all that."

“I’m close to many people. That’s the job of a sheriff, to know the needs of his people and to see to them.” Galo’s hackles were up, certain that this man was insinuating something that he had no business in discussing at all, let alone in front of women.

“It’s a bounty you’re after, then,” Heris spoke softly. Her voice cut through the tension that had been ramping up across the dinner table, but it still did not entirely release. “Is that right, Mister Foresight?”

“Correct. I’ve come here hoping to take the bounty for the three Burnish leaders. They broke off from the rest of their faction a few months back and are sheltering somewhere nearby. A good payoff is in it for anyone that brings them in, dead or alive. Based on what I know of the Burnish and how they operate, it will likely be the former.” Foresight did not break his stare, holding Galo’s eyes as he spoke. “I’m certain that this kind of job would be much easier if I had someone to lend a hand. Perhaps we could come to an arrangement. What say you, sheriff?” The question was a threat, a dagger wrapped in velvet. 

Galo wanted to get out of there. He wanted to run to Lio, to make sure he was safe and he was whole, but running away now would draw the bounty hunter like a predator to blood in the water. He needed to play his cards carefully, not just for his own sake. He felt that this man, if pressed, could easily pose a threat to anyone in this room. Galo had met this type of man before, and he had hoped that he would never have to meet one again. He had no love for men that killed for pleasure or for their own benefit, and he would have no part of it. 

“Apologies, Mister Foresight, but I find myself very well occupied with the work I have in the day-to-day,” he replied, tactful and pointed. _Fuck off. Go no further._

“Fair enough,” Foresight laughed, and it made Galo’s stomach churn. “Perhaps you will change your mind in time.” _You are not allowed to say no to me._

Galo took his watch from his pocket and checked the time. “I’m afraid I must be going now. Thank you, Aina for the wonderful meal.” He kissed her hair and squeezed Heris’ shoulder as he took his leave. 

“Have a good evening, sheriff, and take care out there,” Foresight called at his retreating back. “Lots of danger out there at night.”

Galo barely had his boots on before he took off running, desperate to put as much distance between him and that man as possible.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You ever heard that phrase that goes, ‘you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar’?” Galo braced for impact and rolled the dice on the most dangerous wager he’d ever made. “I thought I’d try my hand at being the honey.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is rather short, but that's because the last chapter was very long. Thank you again to everyone that has stayed on board up to this point. Your comments make my day and I appreciate you all! I'm so happy that you are enjoying reading this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
> 
> -cap
> 
> Brief warning in this chapter for some dehumanizing language and vague allusions to abuse. See end of chapter notes for full description of content if you don't want spoilers.

Lio awoke that morning with his shirt sticking to his skin, overheated from the whiskey-warm press of sleeping bodies. He felt around blindly for his pants and pulled them halfway on before he realized that they were Gueira’s. Still, they would have to do. The three men had spent the night drinking and shouting at each other as they shared jokes at their own expense, and Lio’s head was pounding as he stood up and tottered outside for a piss. His friends remained undisturbed, Meis’ hair in Gueira’s snoring mouth, breathing deeply and peaceful as the sun began to wake. His needs addressed, he slowly wandered back toward the house and he stood barefoot in the grass. When was the last time he’d taken a moment to appreciate the simplicity of dew? He scoffed at the sappiness of it all. He’d never been like this before; Galo must have rubbed off on him. Smiling fondly at the thought of Galo, he found himself wishing that the other man was here to appreciate the start of a new day, too. Unable to suppress a soft smile, he took a deep breath, savoring the cool morning air, before heading off in search of breakfast. It was looking to be a beautiful day.

\----------------------------

After his graceless flight from supper, Galo had run for home as fast as his feet could carry him. He had finally arrived to find his place blessedly empty but found that yet another sleepless night also awaited him. The encounter with the bounty hunter at the Ardebit house had left Galo anxious and teetering on edge. Every noise in the night had shaken him from whatever shallow rest he did get, and he woke feeling more tired than he was when he had laid down. Looking at his face reflected in the water of the wash basin, he realized he looked terrible. His eyes were red and puffy, and he looked pale, verging on ill. He got dressed in yesterday’s clothes and attempted to run a comb through his sleep tousled locks but realized that it was futile when several of the teeth snapped off and were lost in the tangle of his hair. He sighed deeply, eyes closed, already ready for the day to be over. He got himself together and left for town anyway. 

As he made his way on his usual patrol rounds, he could not shake the feeling that he was being followed, his every move thoroughly scrutinized. Every time he looked back over his shoulder, hoping to catch whatever had been tailing him, he found himself alone on the path. He tried to calm down and shake it off, but he felt jumpy and unsettled. He went through the motions of the rest of the morning’s routine, greeting townspeople and checking in where he needed to. He finally made it to the jailhouse, hoping that some time alone might settle his mind. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Lio sitting in Galo’s chair, his feet kicked up on the desktop like he belonged there. Galo felt his heart unclench a little at the sight of him. He could breathe a little deeper as long as Lio was in his line of sight.

“Morning, sheriff,” the outlaw greeted, smile fading a little as he took in Galo’s haggard appearance. No sooner had the words left his mouth when Galo rounded the desk and bent down to embrace him. Lio went rigid, then relaxed into his grip as Galo pressed a kiss to his head and buried his nose in his hair.

“I’ve missed you something terrible,” the sheriff breathed. His heart felt heavy with the weight of the knowledge he carried. He had been wrestling with the idea of telling Lio about the bounty hunter, or just handling it himself. He didn’t want to spook Lio again, who was still skittish. Galo did not want to take away the newfound sense of security that he had worked so hard to give his lover. “I’m glad you came today.”

Lio looked up at him, a concerned crease between his brows. “Did something happen?” he asked, frowning slightly. He scanned Galo’s face, as if he could read the answer in the deep purple bruises beneath his eyes.

“Nothing for you to worry over,” Galo replied, dropping another kiss on his forehead before releasing him. “Just tired, is all. I had trouble sleeping. I’ll be better tomorrow.” He forced a smile, but Lio did not seem convinced.

“Care to come for a walk with me?” Lio asked, getting to his feet. The stuffy jailhouse could not be doing anything good for Galo’s mood. “We could go walk along the creek for a minute. Might do you well to clear your head.” He looked so hopeful, Galo felt like a heel knowing that he would have to say no.

“That sounds lovely and I wish I could. Unfortunately, I still have business here,” Galo answered, but it was not entirely the truth. He could not relax as long as Lio and Kray Foresight were in the same place. He would protect Lio from this no matter what, and he would never need to know how close it came to crashing down around them. “I’d like to see you tonight, if you’ve got the time.”

Lio smiled, unsure, but nodded his head. “I’ve got the time.” Something was wrong, but he could not tell what. Galo clearly did not want to tell him, and it troubled Lio but he let it go. “Do you really want to see me, though? My pride won’t be wounded if you would rather rest.”

Galo tucked Lio’s hair behind his ear, brushing his cheekbone with his thumb. “I always want to see you, jailbird.”

Lio snorted, shaking his head. “Jailbird? Is that your attempt at sweet talking me?”

Galo smiled, a real one this time, and pulled Lio close to him with a hand at his waist. “I can tell that you like it. Consider it a token of my affection, something to remember me by.” Lio rolled his eyes, and stole Galo’s smile with a kiss.

“I suppose I should leave you to your honest work then. I’ll be seeing you tonight, sheriff,” he said, throwing Galo a jaunty little salute as he sauntered out of the jailhouse and out of sight. Galo felt a little lighter after seeing Lio, but he hoped to God or whoever else was listening that Lio and Kray Foresight would never have the misfortune to meet.

\----------------------------

The rest of the day passed in a flurry of boring paperwork and a series of truly unnecessary house calls, all culminating in mediating and settling a neighborly dispute regarding ownership of a delinquent chicken. In the end, the two men had decided to share the chicken, seeing as they were close neighbors and it made the most sense. Galo felt like throwing up his hands and telling them to deal with their own problems, but instead he gritted his teeth and congratulated them on their decision like the professional he was. Exhausted, starving, and annoyed with birds and humans alike, Galo decided to stop in at the tavern to have a quick meal and a well-deserved drink. He was certain that being hungry was not helping his mood, and he felt that he had earned a moment of rest. He asked for whiskey and went to settle down at his usual table with his plate. Supper on this particular night consisted of yellow cornbread and what appeared to be some kind of stew. The nature of the meat didn’t much matter to him, as hungry as he was. He eagerly began to tuck into his meal. His reverie was not to last. The sound of a chair being pulled back across the floor made him pause, and he nearly dropped his spoon as an uninvited guest settled into the seat across from him. 

“So,” Foresight began. He shifted his weight, and the chair creaked dangerously under his massive body. “Have you given any more thought to my generous offer?” The man looked the same as he did the day before. His gaze was shrewd, so sharp that Galo thought it might cut his skin. Cast in the yellow lamp light, he looked like a monster. His enormous bulk made him look like a titan, a vicious bastardization of the Goliath once felled by David. Galo knew it would be wise to keep his distance. He wanted to end the encounter as fast as possible.

“I beg your pardon, but I am only here to enjoy my meal. I’m just a patron of this bar at the moment. If you do not mind, I’d like to continue doing so.” Galo feigned politeness, but his pointed expression was met with cool indifference. “Alone. I’d like to enjoy my meal alone.” He pressed on, but his hint went ignored. Foresight began to pick at his fingernails with the table knife that came as part of Galo’s place setting, flicking the debris at Galo’s plate. The sheriff tried to shield his food, his face scrunched in disgust. 

Foresight remained undeterred, or he had simply elected to ignore Galo’s request. “As I said, I came to discuss the matter of those Burnish degenerates and the sizeable bounty on their heads. It’s good money, and likely easy money at that.” When Galo tried to interrupt, Foresight continued, silencing him with a wave of his hand. “Save your sermon, I’m not interested in what you have to say. Although, I am certain that the good Christian people of this town would love to know what their beloved sheriff gets up to in his private time.” He began to drum the edge of the knife against the table, slow rhythmic taps that set Galo’s teeth on edge.

“Are you really going to blatantly threaten to blackmail a sheriff this way? That’s a very bold move, even for you.” Galo continued, talking sloppily around a mouthful of stew. 

“It’s difficult to blackmail someone who is already under your thumb. Remember who you owe for this little setup you have here. My uncle did not assign you here for you to disgrace him by being uncooperative. Besides, I’m certain that you would not want others to learn of what I know.”

The sheriff stared at him as if he was being jabbered at by a petulant child. “What could you possibly think that you know?”

Foresight leaned closer across the table, a cruel smile twisting his lips. “That you should be more careful about who you take to your bed. You and that Burnish mongrel Fotia seem very close. He is a pretty thing, even for a filthy dog. Looks more like a girl than I thought he would, but I guess you’re partial to that sort of thing,” he sniffed, looking at his nails again. “I don’t know how you haven’t got fleas, letting scum like that on your good sheets.”

Galo felt anxiety tighten in his throat and revulsion roil in his belly. Avoidance was getting him nowhere; the game had been given away and Foresight was showing no signs of backing down. It was time to change tactics. He snorted, as if he was bored by the whole thing. “Truth be told, I’ve been seeking that bounty for myself for a while now,” he said casually, pointing at the man with his spoon. “But you wouldn’t know that, given that you came in here to make salacious accusations rather than communicate like a man.” He waited, uncertain if he would take the bait.

The bounty hunter raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Do go on.” 

“You ever heard that phrase that goes, ‘you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar’?” Galo braced for impact and rolled the dice on the most dangerous wager he’d ever made. “I thought I’d try my hand at being the honey.” The words tasted like ashes in his mouth and he was sickened by the sound of his own voice. He wanted to hide under the table and never come out.

Foresight crossed his massive arms and sat back, impressed. “Quite a bold move, Thymos. How did you know that it would work?” He seemed genuinely interested in the answer, as if they were a pair of old academics comparing notes.

“You have to know your target, Foresight. You should know that,” Galo laid it on thick, trying to convince him that the job was essentially done already, that there was no need to stay. “If you want to set a successful trap, you need to choose the correct lure. I just so happen to be the correct lure in this case. Wouldn’t you say?”

“It’s a rather unorthodox method, but results are results.” Foresight nodded thoughtfully, scratching his chin. “Perhaps you’d be willing to share your little prize before you turn him in? If he’s as much entertainment as you say, I think I might like to know what’s so good about the infamous Lio Fotia.”

Galo’s smile was wooden, and his face felt numb. He hated himself, he wanted to die as he said, “I don’t see why not. He could certainly use a little more breaking in. He’s still too spirited for my taste.”

Foresight laughed like it was a great delight to imagine. The sound was deep and would have been charming if it hadn’t made Galo so nauseous. The bounty hunter had visibly relaxed since their encounter began, clearly thinking he was among the like-minded. “I suppose that you wouldn’t be opposed to cutting me on the capture of the other two?”

 _Shit._ He’d forgotten about the other two. Galo shoveled a grossly large bite of stew and cornbread into his mouth to buy him some time to scrape together a lie. 

\----------------------------

A few tables over from where the sheriff and his friend were engrossed in conversation, sat two men with wide-brimmed hats pulled low over their eyes. Their features were difficult to make out in the uneven light of the tavern. One of them, a thin man with long dark hair, stubbed out his smoke on the tabletop as his red-headed companion drained the last of his drink. They had heard more than enough. It was time to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, Galo pretends that he's also seeking the bounty on the Burnish in an effort to make Foresight leave. He talks about Lio like he's using him for sex and his own gain. Foresight asks if he can "have a turn" with Lio before Galo turns him in, and Galo agrees to keep the lie going.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Oh, sheriff,” Foresight laughed at his retreating back. “If you didn’t want to be mistaken for a pig, then you shouldn’t have rolled in the mud."
> 
> Guilt is a heavy, heavy thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, I will be editing this in the morning when I've had a bit more sleep. Thank you again for all the lovely comments, and the wonderful fan art from @wildheartsneverdie!!! It is an adorable drawing of Lio, and you can view that here: https://tinyurl.com/up7tw4f
> 
> Thank you to all of you for sticking it out this long. This chapter is dark, but also has smut mixed in. Keep in mind that the sequel to this story is already posted (To Quench and Temper), so have faith that everything will all work out in the end. <3
> 
> This chapter contains discussion of dark themes that some readers may find triggering. Please see the notes of at the end of the chapter for a more detailed explanation of the content. That section will include spoilers, so beware.

_Kray Foresight did not know how to shut the fuck up_ , Galo thought with spiteful venom. The man just loved the sound of his own voice, and he had yet to slow down. Foresight had started drinking not long after he’d invited himself to Galo’s table, which had led to telling horrible, perversely detailed stories of his previous contracts. He referred to the men he’d killed as trophies, as animals, like they were less than human, and it was all Galo could do to keep his dinner down. The man talked like he was swapping tales of his antics in the wild days of his youth with an old friend, rather than a man who was bragging about the number of heads, both literal and metaphorical, that he’d taken. Scalps, he’d said. He’d heard tell of natives doing something similar and decided that he wanted to know what all the fuss was about. Galo wanted to hit him. He had thought that he might finally be able to make his escape when the big man had finished the bottle the barkeep had left on the table, but apparently the man could drink like a fish and whiskey loosened his lips. “Thymos,” Foresight leaned forward, eyes manic and wild as his liquor-sour breath washed over Galo’s face. The sheriff winced and recoiled, desperate for someone to rescue him from this hole he dug for himself. “Thymos, listen to me.”

“What is it now?” Galo asked, letting his annoyance break through. He knew that he was about to hear something horrible, and he did not have the patience or stomach for it. He was wishing that he had never lied, had never said anything at all.

“Did I tell you I used to work with a partner? I did. An absolute bastard of a man, almost certainly in hell now. Dead now, buried three years, if I recall correctly.” Foresight’s eyes clouded as he reached for the memory, but he continued. “As it were, my partner near enough caught that little Burnish degenerate a few years back. Got damn close, got a good piece of him, but hm. He couldn’t seal the deal. He took too much time having fun. You know how cats play with mice instead of just eating them?” Galo felt pale. He wished that a bolt of lightning would strike and burn this place to the ground. His hands clenched into fists beneath the table, as if he could crush Foresight with his mind. “Well, as vermin do, he got away. Found my partner dead, bled out like a stuck hog. Guess he got caught with his pants down.” He eyed Galo meaningfully, and Galo’s blood raged in his ears. Foresight sighed. “What a shame, I’d have liked to have done it myself. That man was as big of a piece of shit as any…” He looked wistful, as if imagining what could have been. 

Galo stood up from the table, knocking his chair to the ground. “I have better things to do than to listen to your tall tales anymore. I bid you goodnight.”

“Oh, sheriff,” Foresight laughed at his retreating back. “If you didn’t want to be mistaken for a pig, then you shouldn’t have rolled in the mud. We’re the same, don’t try and act like you’re any better than me. Some might even say that you owe me for this nice little life you’ve got going here.” 

Galo gasped, the words causing him to pause at the door. Was he really any better? If he did not stand up to this man, was he really any better than him? He could not stop himself as he bitterly spat out, “Go to hell.” He shoved his way out of the swinging door, and Foresight’s sadistic laughter followed him out into the night.

\----------------------------

From the road, the Meis and Gueira would look like any other travelers making progress by night. They had been walking in silence, both unwilling to be the first to address the ugly thing that they had seen. The only thing that broke the stillness of the night was the movement of wind through tall grass and the crunching of the earth under their boots. Meis’ posture was more rigid than ever, as if struggling to hold up a heavy burden. Gueira fidgeted with agitated energy, tugging at his clothes until he could not bear it any longer. He stopped and ran his hands through his already messy hair, tearing at it out of anxiety. Meis gently grabbed his wrists and forced him to stop. He’d been known to accidentally hurt himself when he got like this, and Meis would not stand by to watch it happen. 

Gueira still struggled against the firm grip, more out of restlessness than a need to escape. The things that they had overheard in the tavern dug their claws into his brain and would not let go. He looked up at Meis, dark eyes wide and scared. “What do we do now?” The question was simple, but it was not one Meis could answer.

He ran his hand over his partner’s cheek and said, sad and honestly, “I don’t know.” Gueira leaned into the touch, soaking up the grounding contact. “But we can’t stay here. We need to get back to the boss, and we can regroup from there.” He knew that it was enough to keep Gueira moving, enough to feel like they had a plan, but in reality? This was improvisation at best. “I need you with me. I can’t talk to him about this alone.” It was a difficult admission to make, to say out loud that he was relying on another person. Gueira’s face immediately took on a determined look. He kissed Meis on the mouth, quick and hard, and began stomping away down the road. 

“Gueira? We left the horses over there,” Meis called after him, pointing over his shoulder. Gueira paused, sighed, and promptly stomped back in the other direction. Riding would let them cover more ground anyway.

\----------------------------

Galo had tried to quiet his thoughts during his walk home, but he felt volatile and touchy. His body ached with fatigue and his mind teetered irritation and rage, but he kept going, fueled by the promise of sleep. His steps slowed as he noticed flickering light coming from beneath the slightly ajar door and smoke filtering out of the chimney. There was no way Foresight could have beaten him here, could he? Cautiously, he drew his revolver from its holster, crouching low into a defensive stance before he silently traversed the porch. It was not the first time that intruders had tried to catch him unaware, but it was the first time one of them had been so bold as to draw so much attention to themselves. He slipped past the two creaky sentinel floorboards, the one he left unfixed as it served him well as an alarm system. Pressing his back against the wall, he drew a deep breath in through his nose and exhaled the fear that had been coiled in his chest, centering himself before raising his weapon and flinging the door open.

“Hell Lio, you scared the shit out of me,” Galo cursed at the intruder, returning his gun to its place and shutting the door behind him. In the aftermath of his unwanted evening with Foresight, he’d completely forgotten that he had asked Lio to come. Lio, unbothered as ever, lounged at the table, boots kicked up atop the rough-hewn wooden surface. Dry red clay crumbled off the soles as he shifted and craned his head back at Galo, smirking in a self-satisfied way that made Galo want to mess up his pretty, smug face. 

“Evening, Sheriff,” Lio stretched his arms over his head lazily, mirth glinting in his pale eyes in his amusement at having caught Galo by surprise. 

“What have I told you about breaking in? Why do you insist on picking the lock instead of waiting to be invited in like a civilized person?” Galo shed his jacket and holsters, slinging them over the back of the chair not occupied by Lio. 

Lio shifted his position, taking his boots off the table to spread his legs wide, leaning his head on his fist as he propped his arm on the table. He grinned wide, shark-like in the flickering light of the fireplace. “But Sheriff, don’t you know that it’s so much more fun this way?” He spread his legs wide, taking up as much space as possible.

Galo knew that Lio was trying to rile him up and get under his skin, but Galo was a simple man and he could not resist the temptation of venting all his pent-up frustration. He shook his head and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Lio, you have to stop doing this, it’s unbecoming.” 

“Why don’t you let me take your mind off of whatever burr or stick seems to be up your ass today?” Lio purred, rolling to his feet and slowly making his way toward Galo. The sheriff, caught off guard by the sudden proposition, took a step backward toward the door. Lio stalked toward him, his eyes dark and hungry in the low orange light of the room. “I’ve been thinking about you all day, sheriff.”

“I’ve been thinking of you, too,” Galo stammered, frustration and self-loathing forgotten at the boldness. “W-what’s gotten into you?”

“Got tired of being shy,” Lio murmured, pressing Galo back against the door. Although he was a head shorter than the sheriff, he was a force of nature and it would have brought Galo to his knees had he not been held in place by Lio’s hands against his chest. “I’ve decided that if I’m going to have this new life here, then I should go after what I want. And I want you, Galo Thymos, in case that was not clear.” He punctuated this statement by tugging Galo’s shirt sharply, pulling it from the waistband of his trousers. He stood up on his toes, his lips hovering over Galo’s own. “I’d like to show you just how much I want you, if you’re amenable.”

Galo drew in a shuddering breath, his busy mind no longer buzzing, just filled with thoughts of Lio, Lio, just Lio, and nodded his head. Lio’s delicate hands twisted in his hair, yanking him down for a searing kiss. Galo’s hands went to the smaller man’s narrow waist, the span of his hands nearly able to touch with how thin he was. Lio drew back, pupils blown wide and his lower lip shined with saliva as he demanded, “Say it.”

Galo tried to chase him but was held fast by the hand in his hair. He gasped, throat working around the sounds as he tried to formulate words. “Yes, Lio. Please show me.”

Lio pulled at Galo’s shirt until it had come off over his head, leaving him with his kerchief tied haphazardly around his neck. Lio deftly undid Galo’s belt, and wrapped it around his wrists, tying his hands in front of him. “I intend to show you, in exquisite detail, but I need this. I need to know where your hands are.” He smiled, a little sad, and Galo was slammed back into the vile recollection of exactly what Foresight had said, and he understood. He understood everything, like Lio’s skin was see-through and he could investigate all the little hidden spaces inside. What scars were there that Lio had not yet allowed him to see? 

He knelt at Lio’s feet and sighed blissfully as Lio’s nails scratched gently at his scalp. “Let me be good to you.” _I’ve been such a fool_ , he did not say. _I love you_ , he did not say. He looked up at his lover, and said softly, “Please, Lio. Let me be good to you.” Lio leaned down to press a kiss to his lips, dipping his tongue into Galo’s mouth. When he stood back up, he began slowly working at the buttons of his shirt and tugged it off over his head. His body was covered in constellations of freckles over pale, porcelain skin. Galo felt that kneeling was the only position to be in, because this was worship. The offering was himself, as he had nothing more to give. 

Lio made his way over to the bed, dragging Galo by his wrinkled kerchief. He smirked as he listened to Galo’s panting and sat down with his legs slung wide. “Well?” He said, motioning to his belt. “Go on. Make yourself useful.” Galo eagerly wedged his broad shoulders between Lio’s lithe legs and used his bound hands to clumsily work open the belt buckle and the button of Lio’s trousers. He looked up at his lover, who nodded in encouragement, and he began to tug his pants and underclothes down over his narrow hips. Lio reclined and lifted his hips to ease the way, and soon he was laid bare. 

The expanse of skin that lay before him was unknown terrain, the surface of an alien planet and Galo wanted to catalog every detail. A wide scar wrapped around the notches of a few of Lio’s ribs, pale and faded against his creamy skin. It had healed well, and if Galo had not been looking carefully, he would never have seen it. Another gnarled pucker of scar tissue rested just over Lio’s prominent hip bone, clearly the result of an unfortunate encounter with a bullet. He traced his thumb over it, realizing that he knew very little about the life that Lio had lived before they’d met and that what he did know was cruel and ugly. He wasn’t sure he could ever understand it. He pushed the thought aside, pressing a kiss to the scar. Seeing Lio like this, so alive and brilliant like an earthbound star, made him want to be present, to soak up every moment. Lio was beautiful and he wanted Galo’s touch. Galo could give him that. Lio’s cock lay half hard against his thigh, and Galo felt himself being guided by Lio’s grip on his hair. “Have you ever used your mouth like this before?” He asked, petting Galo as the man hesitated.

“Never,” Galo admitted, a blush touching his cheeks. “Can you teach me?” He tried to hide against Lio’s leg, but Lio grabbed his chin and tipped his face up.

He grinned, bright and dazzling, like a man who’d struck gold as he traced his thumb across Galo’s full lower lip. “Open,” he instructed, gently sliding two fingers into Galo’s mouth. Uncertain of what to do and confused by the strange sensation of having another person’s fingers in his mouth, Galo looked up at Lio and studied his face. “I want you to take my cock in your mouth. I want you to use your tongue and keep your teeth out of the way. Practice.” He slowly thrust his fingers in and out of Galo’s wet mouth, letting his lover adjust to the foreign sensation. Galo did his best, making up for his sloppiness and inexperience with enthusiasm and eagerness to please. 

After a moment, Lio pulled his saliva-slick fingers free and stroked himself. He had come to full hardness by watching Galo’s efforts, and he wanted more of him. “Please, Galo,” he asked, urging his lover forward. Galo, still too nervous to dive straight in, tentatively stuck out his tongue and licked over the head to taste the little pearl of fluid that had gathered at the slit. He savored the salt on his tongue and the scent of Lio’s skin as he slowly took him into his mouth. He started slowly, before he tried to take a little more of Lio’s length. He knew he would not be able to take all of it, but he wanted it to be good. He wanted so desperately to please Lio, even if he did not yet know how. 

Lio began to guide him into a rhythm, not pushing him, but showing him how to move. Galo soon got the hang of it, and he heard Lio’s breath hitch when he leaned forward to cup his bound hands around the shaft. He began to move his hands in tandem with his mouth, pulling little gasps and moans from Lio as Galo sucked him off. Lio groaned when Galo deliberately slowed and teased the sensitive place on the underside of the head.

“Galo,” Lio breathed his name, sighing in satisfaction as he began rocking his hips, shallowly thrusting into Galo’s mouth. “Galo, you’re good, you’re _so good_ ,” Lio praised, enjoying the tears that had started to collect in the corners of Galo’s eyes. Lio continued to speed up, wringing his pleasure and all Galo could do was hang on, held at his mercy. Lio’s brow furrowed as heat pooled deep in his belly, but he was not ready for this to end yet. He slowed his pace, panting with the exertion. He leaned down and pressed a sloppy kiss to Galo’s swollen lips. He prompted Galo to stand up, making quick work of his remaining clothing. He had been hard since Lio had first pressed him to the wall, and his member hung heavy. Lio’s fingertips traced over the sensitive flesh and Galo could not help but press into the attention, seeking more friction. Lio moved aside, patting the empty space beside him.

Galo climbed onto the bed on his knees, and Lio leaned in to trail little kisses across his neck and shoulders. He shivered with the sensation of the air cooling the saliva left behind on his skin, and the enjoyment of being touched this way. 

“Galo,” Lio began, pulling back to make sure he had his complete attention. “I want to fuck you.” Galo’s whole face went red and the blush spread down to his chest. He was not a very smart man, but he knew that he did not have the parts that usually accommodated such a thing. “Yes, you do,” Lio replied, and Galo realized he had spoken those thoughts out loud. “Do you trust me?”

Galo’s heart suddenly began racing, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. He swallowed hard as he looked at Lio, and rasped, “Yes.” Lio smiled and pressed a kiss to his cheek before guiding him up onto his knees, as a hand on his back pressed his chest to the bed. Vulnerable and exposed, Galo let out a frustrated sob and tried to hide his face in his bound hands, under a pillow, in anything that he could reach. He yelped when Lio’s hand smacked hard against the meat of his ass cheek, surely leaving a bright red handprint behind.

“Galo Thymos, if you don’t want to do this, you had better speak now or I expect you to hold your peace.” Lio’s hand tangled in his hair, pulling him up and bowing his back. “I ask you again: do you trust me?” 

Galo gasped at the question, crushed beneath the weight of it. Lio released his hair and tried to gentle him by stroking his sides, and Galo felt tears spring to his eyes unbidden. He was overcome by a sudden rush of guilt over what he had done, the horrible things he had said to Foresight earlier. He wanted to keep going, to be here with Lio, but he couldn’t say anything. Words would not come out.

“Galo?” Lio moved into his line of sight. “Look at me, baby.” Galo blinked away tears, sagging to the bed. Lio pushed him onto his side and took the belt off his wrists. “What happened?” His face was so soft and so full of concern, Galo could not hold his gaze.

Galo’s mouth felt dry, like nothing he could say would ever be good enough. This moment was fragile, and he knew that if he failed now, it would shatter into unfixable little pieces. Galo had never been good at being gentle. He was clumsy and crushed most things he cared about by loving them too hard. He’d never met something so utterly breakable as the trust that Lio had placed in him. He knew that the man put on an air of cool and aloof confidence, but Galo saw through that to the raw, soft heart beneath. What he had done could very easily hurt him, and Galo had to make it right.

“Lio, I’ve been a fool.” He whispered into the humid air between them. It felt surreal, to admit that he could not handle this on his own. He looked down at his hands, as if they would show him the right words, but they were empty. “I thought I was doing the right thing. I thought I was protecting you, but I think I’ve just gone and made matters worse.”

Lio’s eyes narrowed suspiciously and he sat back, putting space between him and Galo. “What have you done?”

Galo was barely able to get out the words, “Foresight is in town,” before the door was kicked in, and the inward rush of movement ended with the cool kiss of a revolver barrel pressed against his temple and the sound of a hammer being pulled back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains allusions to past assault. If you are sensitive to this content, please skip the first section and begin reading at the start of the second section that begins with "From the road, Meis and Gueira..."
> 
> This chapter also describes a panic attack during a sexual encounter that is not triggered by anything that is actively happening during the encounter, but is brought on by a character's personal guilt. 
> 
> The chapter ends with a gun being pressed to a character's temple.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I had thought better of you, Galo.” Lio did not look at him, his head lowered. His voice was quiet, laden with regret. “How deeply disappointing to learn that I was wrong.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come get y'all juice
> 
> when this chapter was uploaded, this fic had 69 comments on it. nice :')
> 
> Same trigger warnings apply as the last chapter, with allusions to past assault and mentions of violence.

Galo’s blood froze in his veins, colder than the metal pressed to his skull. Lio moved in a reflexive flash, producing a revolver of his own out of the space beneath the mattress. When had he put it there? Galo didn’t know, but he watched as Lio’s initial fear was replaced with pure and righteous fury as he leveled his own weapon at the intruder in one fluid motion. He was shouting, yelling at whoever it was that stood behind Galo, but the static between Galo’s ears prevented him from understanding anything. All he could think about was how ridiculous it was that he was going to die like this, naked and terrified in his own bed.

Lio lunged, striking out with his free hand, and the pressure against Galo’s skull was gone. Audio came back in full force as Lio shouted right next to his ear. “What the _fuck_ are you doing?!” With his free hand, he pulled the quilt over Galo to protect his modesty. “Get the hell out!” Lio seemed to have no concern for his own nudity and focused more on shielding Galo from view.

“Boss, I’m going to need to ask you to get away from him,” came a man’s cold, level voice. “We need to leave, and we need to do it fast. Get dressed.” From the corner of his eye, Galo could see that the man still held his weapon raised and pointed at him. “We may not have much time.”

“Come on boss, we would not be here if it wasn’t serious,” another man’s voice came, this one a little more shrill, a lot less composed than his counterpart. “We will explain when we are on the road,” he said, raising his hands in a placating gesture but winced when Lio scoffed. 

“Don’t ‘boss’ me, you’ve just fucking kicked down a door and put a _gun_ to his head for no goddamn reason!” Lio’s voice cut through the hostile air of the room, clearly the voice of authority even in his vulnerable state. “Someone should tell me what the hell is going on, and it better be quick!”

“We were planning to just knock but we heard someone crying and Meis thought you were in trouble,” Gueira tried to counter, waving lamely at the wreckage of the door. “We didn’t realize you were indecent-” Lio shut him down, whipping a nearby boot at him and hitting him in the knee, causing Gueira to yowl in surprise and pain.

Lio was seething with indignation and embarrassment. “ _Get the fuck out_. We will get dressed, and then I expect you to fully explain yourselves, or you will live to regret it.” The two men tried to protest, but Lio’s face was stone and brooked no argument. The long-haired man hesitated, as if unwilling to let Lio out of his sight, but the wiry redhead turned on his heel and strode out into the night. His companion reluctantly lowered his weapon and turned, hesitating at the now empty door frame before following him out.

“Before they came in, you said something about Foresight,” Lio said as he stood unnervingly still. Galo still sat frozen on the bed, breath coming shallow and fast as Lio stood with his back to him. His face, turned in profile, was a cold and emotionless mask now as he instructed, “I expect you to explain yourself, because I am not in the mood for forgiveness. If you hold anything back,” Lio paused, returning his revolver’s hammer to its previous state and stuffing it into the waistband of his pants. “You will not like what happens.”

This was a version of Lio that Galo did not recognize, and it was chilling. The line of his shoulders was rigid as he began to dress with practiced efficiency. A chill detachment had settled over Lio and he was withdrawn, no longer the indulgent and tender lover that he had been just moments before. This familiar stranger was the Lio Fotia of legend, the ruthless and calculating leader of the Burnish. His small stature could not contain him, all of his command and dominance spilling over and rolling off of him in waves. This Lio Fotia was unwilling to suffer a fool or a traitor, and Galo, in his blundering attempts at protecting him, had become both of those things. Galo’s limbs felt heavy and unwieldy as he followed Lio’s example, pulling his clothes on. 

Lio stepped to the door frame and whistled, a single sharp note, and the two men from earlier returned after a moment. They positioned themselves as watchdogs would, one near the door and one between Lio and Galo. The red-headed man started to speak, but Lio silenced him with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Galo,” Lio addressed him, still cold and aloof. “Before Meis and Gueira interrupted,” he went on, motioning to each man respectively. “You were going to tell me something. I suggest you rehash that for them.” 

“I… I admitted that I had made a mistake,” Galo swallowed, throat dry with unease. “I was trying to protect you, and I thought I could keep it from you. I was wrong.”

“And what else?” Lio prompted. Lio looked back and forth between Meis and Gueira, who stared back at him. None of their faces gave anything away, all carefully blank.

If Galo did not know better, he would have sworn that they were communicating without saying a single word. “That Foresight…” Galo cringed. “That Foresight is in town.”

“And then we were interrupted,” Lio addressed his lieutenants, Gueira looking increasingly more uncomfortable and Meis’ face was partially obscured by the curtain of his hair. “So. Speak.”

Gueira’s eyes darted back and forth between Meis and Lio, and he lamely beckoned for Meis to come stand by him. Meis reluctantly made his way over to the door and stood at his side.

“We went to the tavern tonight. The sheriff was there to have supper. Foresight joined him at the table. From what we could hear, that nasty sonofabitch told the sheriff here that he was seeking the bounty on us. You in particular,” Meis explained, his eyes burning and his tone laced with underlying venom directed at Galo.

“Boss, it’s more than just that.” Gueira took over, Meis’ presence bolstering his courage. He pointed at Galo, angry now. “He said that he was getting close to you so that he could claim the bounty for himself. He told Foresight that he could…” Gueira shook his head, face scrunched in disgust. “He said that he could… That he’d let that bastard hurt you before he gave you up. We rode to the house, and you weren’t there, so we figured this was the likeliest other place to find you.” Gueira scuffed the toe of his boot against the floor, wishing that he was doing literally anything other than having this unfortunate conversation. 

An uncomfortable silence settled in the room after Gueira’s last statement, and Lio’s hands trembled despite himself. He clenched them into fists to settle himself. His mind was reeling, the mere mention of Foresight making his stomach clench in revulsion. He hated that man with all that he was, but he had thought that at long last, he had finally outrun him. He’d let his guard down, had gotten comfortable. Foolish. It was foolish to think that he would get a moment of rest, that Foresight wouldn’t sniff him out like a bloodhound only to chase him down and rip him to pieces. Foolish. Stupid.

Lio sighed. “I had thought better of you, Galo.” Lio did not look at him, his head lowered. His voice was quiet, laden with regret. “How deeply disappointing to learn that I was wrong.” He motioned to his companions as he began to walk away. “Let’s go. We’ve got ground to cover,” he said, and Meis and Gueira fell into step behind him as he made for the door. The words hit the sheriff square in the chest, crushing him beneath their weight. The moment was quickly accelerating toward the point of no return, and he felt like he was slipping down an incline, scrambling to dig his nails in and regain purchase. If he didn’t, he would fall, and it would all be over. Forever.

“Please, let me explain,” Galo pleaded, mistaking the heartache in Lio’s words for bitterness. The two men that Lio called Meis and Gueira stared over their shoulders at him with open disdain, like he was lower than dirt, like he was cow shit that they had to scrape from the bottoms of their boots. No one said anything to object or otherwise deny him the opportunity, so he charged ahead. “He told me that if I didn’t give you up, all of you,” he began, motioning to all three men. “Then he would out the nature of our relationship to the town. His uncle is well-connected politically. He called in favors when I was young and had nowhere to go, and that in turn gave me my position here. Foresight felt I owe him. He would not take my evading his questions for an answer.” 

Only Gueira had fully turned to look at him, listening intently. Meis and Lio stood still, unmoved. Galo took a deep breath, hoping that his words were getting through to them. “I wanted him to leave and never come back, so I tried to convince him that the job was already done. He told me horrible things, Lio. He told me about men he’d killed and all about his partner. He told me about how he had hurt you, how he had died, and I wanted to protect you from that, too. I didn’t want you to have to be scared anymore…” He sagged, unable to hold himself up anymore. He always seemed to end up on his knees. “You seemed so happy lately, I wanted to shield you from this ugly thing, to let you keep the peace you’ve made. I continued to lie; I realize that all I’ve done in the end was take that peace from you myself by thinking I could outsmart him.”

Lio turned halfway to face him, taking in the pathetic sight. “Do you know how many we’ve had to bury because of him?” 

“Lio, I wish I could take back the lie and had just told you from the start. I worried you would leave if you knew... I wish I could fix it.” Galo’s head hung low with the weight of confession. “Please let me make this right.” It was a plea, a prayer. He craved absolution, but God, unlike Lio Fotia, was forgiving. 

Gueira, tired of the staring contests and ready for a real solution, cleared his throat and said, “Boss? Can we talk outside?” Lio nodded the affirmative and they made their way out, leaving Galo alone in the empty house.

\----------------------------

Galo hauled his heavy body up into one of the rickety chairs, feeling exhausted and empty. He was alone again, but all of the warmth that had been in the house before had belonged to Lio. Had been because of Lio. Without him, this was just a dwelling. Could he even imagine life without Lio anymore? He did not want to think about it. The three men had been gone for a long time, and with each quiet second Galo felt more and more alone. 

As excruciating moments of silence continued to trickle by, Galo’s mind began to race. Could he accept the seemingly inevitable reality of Lio leaving this way? Could he handle being the cause of that loss? It was not the right moment to think about love, but that’s what was on the line. If Lio left, he’d take all that love with him. Galo knew he would never be able to get over it. He knew he was probably crying but he didn’t feel it. All he felt was numb.

\----------------------------

Lio had thought that he would feel relieved at being outside, but the darkness was oppressive and he felt like he wanted to break something. Meis clicked open the cigarette case he carried and offered one to Lio. He took it gratefully, thankful to have something to do with his hands. Gueira offered a match, and Lio took a drag. The smoke in his lungs grounded him, and he watched it spiral out of his mouth and up into the night. 

“Boss, may I speak freely?” Gueira asked, exhaling his own cloud of smoke. His face looked tired and heavily lined in the combination of the thin moonlight and the cherry of his cigarette.

“Please,” Lio urged him on. “I am loathe to admit that I don’t know what to think right now.”

Gueira nodded, squaring his shoulders before he announced, “I believe him.”

Lio’s eyebrows climbed up toward his hairline, surprised at the boldness of his lieutenant. “Care to elaborate on that statement?”

“He just seemed so… Devastated.” Gueira shuffled his feet. “He thought he was helping. His reasoning for why he did what he did is foolish, but he’s…”

Meis snorted, interjecting, “Also a fool?”

Gueira grinned, and just shrugged his shoulders.

“Admittedly, I may have gotten a little panicked when we didn’t find you at the house,” Meis confessed, looking up to avoid making eye contact. “I imagined the worst.”

“It’s unlike you to act so rashly,” Lio commented, a small smile on his lips.

“Can you truly blame me?” Meis asked, pausing to take a drag from his smoke. “After what Foresight and his ilk have already done… I couldn’t stand to see it happen again.”

“Still alive, still in one piece. Besides,” Lio flicked his spent cigarette away and placed a hand on each man’s shoulder with a reassuring squeeze. “Do you think I would really let Kray Foresight be the one to kill me?”

The other men chuckled at that. “Suppose not,” Gueira said. “What are we going to do about this mess, boss?”

Lio sighed. He wasn’t sure. Still, they had to do something. “Let’s go back. I think I have a plan, but we will need Galo to help us.”

\----------------------------

Galo’s head snapped up as the Burnish returned, their entrance preceded by the creaking floorboards of the porch. The two lieutenants made their way in first, with Lio slinking in behind them. He looked at his two men, and they nodded in response to some unspoken question. Lio moved to stand in front of Galo, just out of reach, and peered down at his face. Tear tracks had left his eyes puffy and red, and Lio clamped down on the urge to wipe the remaining tears away. Now was not the time.

“Galo.” Lio spoke firmly. “It’s time you and I had a conversation. Come take a walk with me.”

Once again, Lio was not asking. It was a command. Galo looked up, his eyes huge and hopeful, and he scrambled to his feet. He followed Lio outside, dogging his heels as if he’d disappear if he got more than three feet away. They disappeared out into the dark, leaving Meis and Gueira to watch the house.

“Christ, what a sap,” Gueira muttered to himself, after watching the big man trail after Lio like an over-sized puppy. “Do I ever look at you that stupid?”

“Hard to say,” Meis replied, a ghost of a smile on his lips. “You look stupid all the time.”

\----------------------------

Lio could feel Galo looking at him. He wanted to be annoyed, but affection always seemed to cloud his judgment when it came to Galo. The sheriff, in all of his well-meaning but heavy-handed actions, really had tried to have Lio’s best interest in mind. He was glad that he had stayed to listen, because he had been ready to leave. It would have been so terribly painful, possibly a mortal wound, to have to leave Galo, but he would have done it if it was to keep his men safe. 

“So,” Lio began, uncertain as to what he would say next.

“Lio, I’m sorry.” Galo said again, as if he wasn’t sure Lio had heard it the first hundred times he had said it already. “Please tell me what I can do to fix this.”

“Do you know where Foresight is staying?” Lio asked, not looking at Galo. Fine, maybe he wanted to be mad a little longer.

“The Ardebit house. Aina took him on as a lodger.” Galo answered right away. “Not sure what he does during the day, but he either takes meals there or at the tavern.” 

“I have a feeling that he spends most of his time following you,” Lio said with a wry expression. “We need to get rid of him. I have a plan, but I need your help.”

“Anything,” Galo said immediately. “Just tell me what to do.”

“In a few days’ time, I’ll leave a note on the door that says to meet me at the church. That’s all I need you to do.” Lio finally looked up at Galo, who was listening intently.

The sheriff nodded, asking, “What will you do then?”

Lio stared hard into his face. “Do not ask questions that you do not want the answers to.”

Galo had a fleeting moment where he felt as if he was under the gaze of a predator, like he could hear the rattle but could not see the snake. “I can’t turn a blind eye to murder, Lio.”

Lio scoffed bitterly. “He’s a rabid dog. It would be doing the world a favor.”

“I’m the sheriff, Lio, it’s my job to protect people,” Galo interjected. “I understand what you’ve been through, but I can’t let you make this mistake. You don’t have to put more blood on your hands.”

Lio looked at Galo as if he pitied him. “Do you remember the scar on my hip?”

Galo tilted his head, curious. “What does that have to do with anything?”

Lio looked away and took a deep breath. “I was running from Foresight when I got it. I was barely able to walk, let alone run anymore after I got hit. He let his partner track me down, and you know the rest. I was just lucky I had a boot knife. I’m never without one now.”

Galo’s face crumpled and he raised his arms as if to embrace Lio, but he was stopped with a small hand on his chest. “You need to understand something, Galo Thymos. This is not revenge. This is not about me, and this is not about the dead. What about the ones that will still be hurt if he is allowed to continue as he is now?” Lio’s eyes were burning into Galo’s own as he stared him down. This person was not Lio Fotia, the lover and friend, nor was he Lio Fotia, the merciless leader of the Burnish. He was a new person, a wounded one, but one that was still fighting with all he had. Galo wasn’t sure how he had never noticed it before. “If you plan to get in my way, tell me now. I will take my men and go.” 

And there it was, the poisonous grain of truth that had festered into a sour, contaminated pearl: Galo would have to choose between Lio or the essence of his duty as sheriff and by proxy, the life of one Kray Foresight. 

The choice was obvious. “I… I will not get in your way, but I also can’t help you with whatever it is you intend to do. Truthfully, I just don’t see another way for him to be brought to justice. He’s been operating outside the law for so long now that law enforcement can’t touch him. I don’t like it,” Galo lamented, ashamed that he could not disagree with Lio’s evaluation of the situation.

“I don’t operate within the law either, sheriff,” Lio replied with a faint smirk. “And you seem to like me just fine.” 

“God, Lio,” he breathed. “I thought you were going to leave and I’d never see you again. I don’t think I could take it.” _I love you_ , he thinks to himself, wondering if it’s loud enough for Lio to hear.

Lio stood up on his toes and twisted his arms around Galo’s neck. He kissed Galo softly, a chaste press of lips, and drew away. Lio traced delicate fingers over Galo’s cheekbone and says, “You’re a sap, Galo Thymos.” He tucked himself against Galo’s side, small and warm, and Galo can’t help but feel that he is holding something precious.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Well, that settles it then,” Meis declared, passing Gueira his empty cup. “I guess we are going to the church. Do you think you can handle it?” He looked at Gueira meaningfully. It was loaded question, as Gueira was the only one of the three of them that maintained any semblance of faith.
> 
> Gueira stared off into the middle distance, and said, “That will be between me and God, I suppose.”
> 
> “We’re going to hell anyway,” Lio remarked. “Might as well earn it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are barreling head-first toward the shit, folks. Thanks for staying with me this long. I estimate that there are 3, possibly 4 chapters remaining including the epilogue. All of your comments and kudos keep me going, and it has been such a fun experience to write this story. I hope you enjoy what I have in store for you.
> 
> \- cap

That night, Lio and the other Burnish did not stay. They disappeared out into the brush, leaving Galo alone in his empty house with an anxious heart and a demolished door. There was no fixing it; it was destined to become firewood. The parting between him and Lio was awkward, neither sure of what to say. Lio did not kiss him goodbye, nor did he tell him when, or even if, they would meet again. Of course, it was probably better that way. It would be more difficult for him to accidentally give away their plans if he did not know what their plans were in the first place. He forced himself to go to bed, accepting the inevitable hours of lying awake that would follow. Night sounds filtered in through the open doorway, letting Galo know of each and every creature that moved by his dwelling under the cover of darkness. At some point around four a.m., he finally drifted off.

\----------------------------

After they had returned to their hideout, Lio immediately took to anxious pacing as if he were looking to wear a hole through the floor. Just watching it made Meis and Gueira tired. They looked at each other and decided that they had to intervene. Meis grabbed Lio by the shoulders and shepherded him toward the bedding pile. He looked exhausted and emotionally drained. They had seen him like this before only once or twice, usually in the aftermath of some major event or botched raid, and it had usually preceded a frustrated tantrum and that never ended well for anybody within arm’s reach. 

“Come on now, boss. You need to sleep. You look like shit,” Meis said, snagging Lio’s sleeve when he tried to escape and go back to his pacing. After a moment of struggle, Meis was too tired to be nice. He tossed Lio down into the blanket pile as if he were a sack of potatoes, and sat on his back, pinning him. Lio flailed and snarled, trying to get up and return to his anxious planning. Knowing that they would get nowhere this way but uncertain as to what to do next, Gueira aimed for a direct approach.

“Hey boss,” the redhead said, squatting down next to where Lio lay pouting like a stubborn child. “Don’t be a fussy baby.” He patted Lio’s hair, now a veritable rat’s nest from being windblown and unbrushed for a long time. “Maybe it would help to talk about it. We need to know what you’re thinking here.”

Lio scowled at him for a moment before dropping his head down into the covers with a dull thump. “Am I being naïve?” he asked, voice small and muffled by pillows. “Is it a mistake to keep trusting him?” Gueira pulled his boots from his feet, and then set to work on Lio’s own. “Am I putting us all in danger?”

“Difficult to say, so your guess is as good as mine, boss. But I’ll tell you what I do know,” Gueira began, tossing the boots away. He flopped down next to his friends and folded his arms behind his head. “I’ve never seen any of your previous dalliances act _that_ torn up at the thought of you leaving, and I’ve certainly never seen _you_ be this blue about it.”

Meis hummed in agreement, still sitting on Lio’s back. “Boss,” Meis said, toying with his cigarette case. “You know I don’t take to people real easily. But…” he trailed off and sighed. “You’re not very good at seeing it when people show you that they care about you.”

Gueira huffed a laugh. “To put it mildly. That man looked at you like you hung the moon and sunshine comes out your ass.” He wiggled a little, settling further into the bedding as he stifled a yawn. “Still… I do believe he had good intentions. Meis won’t say it, but I know he does too.”

Meis said nothing, but sighed. That was enough for the others to recognize as reluctant agreement.

“Meis.” Lio’s voice was still muffled, but stronger now.

“Yes, boss?” Meis said casually from his perch.

“You can get off of me now.” Lio said, defeated and deflated. Meis let him free and lay next to him on the blanket pile. There was barely enough room for all three of them there, but they’d slept in worse conditions. Lio closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and resigned himself to his fate.

“You should sleep now,” someone said, but Lio was already out.

\----------------------------

For the next four mornings, daylight came in like a tidal wave, the open door frame letting it wash over Galo and slash through the shallow veil of his sleep with the sun’s early rays. He sighed, forcing himself to get up and continue like nothing was wrong. He still had a job to do, and he needed to keep up appearances. That was what Lio had asked of him, and he’d be damned if he would let him down. Again. Still, Lio had said that he had a hunch that Foresight spent most of his days following Galo around, likely hoping that Galo would lead him to his quarry. Well, two could play at that game. He’d have to keep his eye on Foresight and make sure that he did not get anywhere close to Lio until the time was right. Whenever that may be. 

\----------------------------

During those four excruciatingly long days, the morning greeted the three renegades much in the same way greeted Galo: rudely. All three men were up before the sun and grumbled at each other in complaint over runny eggs and watery chicory, which Meis swore passed for coffee. It was a piss-poor substitute, but they had to work with what they had. Even though sleep still crusted Lio’s eyes and he longed to let the day pass him by, he knew that he needed to be up and moving: the time had come. They’d spent the last few days deciding the best plan of action, mapping out the town and weighing the pros and cons of each potential location. They knew that Foresight was not to be trifled with, and that if they were going to strike, they would only have one chance. If they failed, they would likely not see another day. It was not just their lives at risk here, but Galo’s too, and anyone else that happened to get in Foresight’s way. 

“Are we sure that the church is the best location? I still think that the jail might be the best way to go,” Gueira complained, banging his empty tin cup down on the table. “It was built for this exact purpose!”

“It’s won’t hold him,” Lio sighed. “The wood is rotting out in certain places, and someone like Foresight would easily make their way out. Foresight would know that, I’m certain he’s scoped it out.”

Meis took a sip of his drink, nodding for a moment before narrowing his eyes. “Wait, when did _you_ see the inside of the jail?”

Lio looked at him blankly as he replied, deadpan, “Don’t ask questions you don’t want the answers to.”

Meis shook his head and sighed, lamenting his boss’ choice in men. “Innuendo aside, if you don’t like the jail, then what are the other options? Do we have anything besides the church?”

Lio recited his mental list. “Galo- excuse me, the sheriff’s house, our house, or the church. We are looking for an enclosed space away from the main town, so that we won’t be at risk for civilians overhearing or interfering.” He looked at his roughly drawn map again, jotting down notes for himself. “Our house has a strategic advantage. No close neighbors, far from town, and we know the area around it better than anyone. I’m certain that Foresight does not even know this place is out here, or he would have come sniffing around already.”

“Like _hell_ are we bringing that bastard here. Over my dead body!” Gueira snapped, waving his arms. The idea of having someone as foul and evil in their house was offensive. “Do you know how long it took Meis to get this place livable? It was full of spiders and detritus! He’d have to clean the whole thing all over! Not to mention, I’d have to cleanse the house _again_.” He shivered at the thought and made the sign of the cross. “Do you know how long that would take?!”

Meis nodded, as if it were a sensible objection. “You remember how badly this place stunk when we got here, and then when he burned sage the first time. Do you really want to go through that again?”

“I’m not saying that I am fond of the thought of him being here either, but we have very limited options,” Lio said, pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing. “So, if you have a better idea, I would love to hear it.”

“Why not the sheriff’s house?” Gueira asked, crossing his arms over his chest with his hip cocked to one side. He looked very much like someone’s angry mother, especially considering that he had just complained about Meis having to clean the house _again_ , which no one had even asked him to do in the first place. Gueira was just like that. It was one of his exaggerated quirks, and they had learned to live with it.

“Think very carefully about that statement, dear,” Meis replied, eyes closed and still sipping his piss water ‘coffee’. 

“What of it?” Gueira snarked, busying himself with scrubbing out a skillet that had been used that morning. 

“We are wanted fugitives and we are actively planning to commit a crime,” Meis answered. He was unphased by Gueira’s temper. “We can hardly commit crimes in a sheriff’s house. It would just be… wrong, I guess.”

“I hadn’t thought of it that way.” Gueira sighed deeply, his shoulders sagging. “You’re right.”

“I suppose we are left with the church as our remaining option,” Lio remarked, checking his map again to remind himself of how it was situated in relation to the town. “It’s isolated. I’ve never seen anyone else there after dark.” He blushed a little when he realized that wasn’t exactly true. He had seen Galo there, and that was how they’d gotten into this whole mess.

“Well, that settles it then,” Meis declared, passing Gueira his empty cup. “I guess we are going to the church. Do you think you can handle it?” He looked at Gueira meaningfully. It was loaded question, as Gueira was the only one of the three of them that maintained any semblance of faith.

Gueira stared off into the middle distance, and said, “That will be between me and God, I suppose.”

“We’re going to hell anyway,” Lio remarked. “Might as well earn it.”

\----------------------------

On the morning of the fifth day, Galo woke with a start with the realization that Lio had said he’d leave a note on the door. What door was he referring to? His door had been obliterated by a pissed off lieutenant, and he’d yet to repair it. Was Lio waiting for him to fix the door? Was _he_ the one that was unintentionally delaying their plan? 

“Goddamnit,” he cursed as he heaved himself out of bed, pulling on pants, boots, and little else. He had made it a quarter mile down the road before he realized he’d forgotten to put a shirt on. He threw his hands up in the air and just decided to buy a new one when he got to town. They could put it on his tab along with the new door.

When Galo finally arrived in town, he marched straight into the general store and the proprietor immediately sensed his foul mood. 

“Good morning, sheriff,” the mustachioed man greeted, not looking up from the ledger he was writing in. “What can I do for you today?”

“Get me a-” Galo stopped himself and took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose. Ignis did not deserve to be on the receiving end of his temper today. “Good morning, Ignis. How are you today?”

Ignis finally looked up at him, quirking one eyebrow. “A bit warm out for you today?” he asked, motioning at Galo’s bare chest with the end of his pen. 

“I apologize, but it seems my last shirt has been ruined. Coyotes…” his eyes darted back and forth as he searched for a believable lie, his eyes falling on a spool of twine. “Uh, coyotes got the washing line... I was hoping you had a new one I could purchase.” Galo said sheepishly, knowing that the excuse was flimsy at best. “Also, I need a new door for my house. Something… unfortunate happened to the last one, do you think you could help me?”

Ignis said nothing, simply closed his ledger and disappeared into the back room of the store. Galo stood there in front of the counter, sweat trickling down his back as he waited for Ignis to return. Galo had just started to tap his foot in impatience when a tall, thin man with glasses entered the store in a flurry of activity, hastily tying an apron around his back. 

“I apologize for being late Ignis, I ran into-” the man cut himself off, stunned by what was surely a hallucination of a Greek god, or some incubus sent by the Devil himself to tempt him. “Oh.” Galo gave him a little wave and turned back to face the counter. His ears burned red, and he wished the ground would open and swallow him up. He was notorious for making a fool of himself, but this was just ridiculous. 

Finally, Ignis emerged from the back, taking in the sight of his store clerk staring holes into Galo’s bare back. “I’ll send you a bill for the door once the work is done. Remi will be by later to get the measurements. Shirt’s on the house.” He brusquely tossed a bundle of cloth at Galo and rubbed his temples with his fingers. “Get out of my shop, sheriff.”

“Yes sir!” Galo gave him a salute, then immediately proceeded to get tangled up in his new shirt and trip on his way out the door.

\----------------------------

When he got to the jailhouse, he wished he had just stayed home today. The unmistakable bulk of the bounty hunter was leaning against the wall with feigned nonchalance, as he fiddled with a little folded piece of paper in his hands. 

“Sheriff,” Foresight greeted, voice gruff. “Nice shirt.” Galo looked down and noticed that it had little embroidered flowers around the collar. Great. Perfect.

“What do you want?” Galo asked, his supply of patience for the day had long since been depleted.

“Seen Fotia lately? I was hoping we could get a move on with collecting that bounty. Time is of the essence and all.” Foresight spit into the dirt, barely missing Galo’s boot. 

“No. I’m hardly his keeper, am I?” Galo rolled his eyes and breezed by him, unlocking the jailhouse to let himself in. 

“Interesting.” Foresight smirked at him, and Galo wanted to punch his face in. “Well, let me know if you learn something new.” He handed Galo the piece of paper he’d been wrinkling and started to walk away.

Galo unfolded it and scanned the note quickly, his eyes drinking in the familiar spidery writing.

_Come to confession tonight. 10 pm._

“By the way sheriff, it’s so nice that they offer such late-night church services,” Foresight called over his shoulder. “Still, I didn’t think they did confessional here.” He waved and disappeared around the corner.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hail Mary, full of grace…” As Lio slipped out the door, he could make out the quiet murmuring of, “Pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm going to edge you all with this finale for another chapter. you're welcome.
> 
> Sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes, I just underwent a change in medication and now I have soup brain.
> 
> \- cap

By the time the sun had gone down and night had truly settled, Galo was already a mess. He had _one_ job to do, and that was to go to the church at 10 pm. How could he possibly fuck this up? He was going to go insane if he stayed in the jailhouse any longer, so he made his way over to the tavern in hopes that maybe a change in atmosphere might help settle both his stomach and sooth his frazzled nerves. He was wrong. The smell of greasy cooking, the underlying odor of liquor breath, and the stink of unwashed bodies made his stomach do a queasy little flip, but it was busy and he needed distraction. He took up his post at his usual table, and observed the room. _How lucky they are_ , he thought a little bitterly. _They have no idea of what kind of monster is walking among them._ Galo liked to think of himself as a kind and caring person, but when it came to Foresight, Galo wouldn’t piss on him if that bastard were on fire. Regardless, he had spent the last few nights wrestling with himself over the ethical gray area he found himself inhabiting. 

Was this really justifiable? Lio thought it was, but Galo was not so sure. He had hoped that there was perhaps some way they could settle everything without bloodshed, but Galo had since come to understand that men like Foresight were beyond reason. He was broken, damaged in a way that could not be undone. He supposed that men like that were just built wrong, like there was a flaw in those blueprints. That thought sent him back to thinking of Lio, and how an outlaw, of all people, had been the one to accept him when he felt like he had not been worthy of it. Galo heard the nasty, vicious whisper of doubt creep into his mind. If Foresight was built different, and he himself was built different… Was Foresight right? Were they really the same? He felt the spiral of panic begin to sweep him away as the tavern doors swung open. His heart skipped and twisted hard in his chest, for he’d spoken of the devil and hoped to God that he would not appear. Thankfully, it was not Kray Foresight, but instead a family that had come to have supper. Galo checked his watch. Only ten minutes had passed since he’d arrived, and he already felt like he was coming out of his skin. How the hell was he supposed to last another two hours?

\----------------------------

Exactly one hour before Galo found himself reeling with existential dread, the Burnish house was far more silent. In the countdown to their designated meeting time, each man had cleaned and sharpened all of his knives, cleaned and oiled all his firearms. As part of their daily wear they each carried a revolver, but their backup weapons were more personal. Gueira, being less fond of guns than the other two, had elected to bring along the wrought iron fireplace poker from their house, ignoring Lio and Meis as they each gave him an incredulous look when he swung it around to test its weight and balance. It had a vicious-looking hook on the end, and Gueira thought it would serve him well. For good measure, he also strapped a hunting knife to his thigh along with a leather pouch containing extra ammunition. He turned to his partner, and ran his fingers through Meis’ silky hair, gently combing out the tangles. He gathered it in his hands, and tied it into a messy low knot at the nape of his neck. He bound it with a piece of cloth torn from one of his old shirts, long since shredded for bandages. Meis pressed a kiss to his cheek in thanks, and went back to work preparing his ammunition. He was less creative with his weaponry than his comrades, settling for a long rifle and a boot knife. He wasn’t sure how useful the rifle would be in a dark building, but their options were limited and it was better than nothing. He knew from experience that a rifle could be used to bludgeon someone if you were really in a pinch, but he preferred not to think about that. Lio was no more or less armed than he usually was, with multiple holsters and knife sheaths tucked away into all corners of his clothing. He knew his weaponry well and felt confident in his skills with his chosen tools, but he wondered if it would be enough. Just in case, he slipped an extra knife sheath onto his belt at the back of his pants for his own peace of mind. Content with his arsenal, he tied his hair back out of his face with a little strip of leather.

“It’s time,” Gueira informed them, as he was the only one with a working watch.

“Alright. You know what to do.” Lio said, and they stepped out into the dark.

\----------------------------

Lio moved through the shadows like he was made from it, the route he’d charted cutting a swath through windswept wheat fields, brush, and trees alike as he guided Gueira and Meis toward the church. They had left the horses at the drop point earlier in the day, to ensure that they would be waiting for them should they need to flee. They had all been moving in silence, the sense of impending doom too heavy for any of them to ignore.

Gueira tried to ease the burden by poking Meis in the side. “Gotta admit, this is not how I imagined you ever taking me to church,” he whispered.

Meis snorted, holding back a laugh. “I will honestly be shocked if I set foot in the door and don’t immediately burst into flame.”

“That would be quite a shame.” Gueira nodded sagely and patted his shoulder, remarking, “I’ll make sure not to spill any holy water on you.”

“Not like it would do me any good, anyway. I’m completely certain that God thinks I’m beyond help,” Meis said, his mouth twisted with a crooked smirk.

“You’re both beyond help,” Lio sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “Shut the hell up.” Still, the air of intensity about him had cracked just a little.

“But Boss,” Gueira interjected. “You said it yourself, we’re all going to hell anyway, what with all the crime we’ve done and the like.”

“And that’s to say nothing of the sodomy,” Meis added helpfully, snickering as he and Gueira grinned at each other.

“Yeah,” Gueira parroted, far too loudly for the quiet night. “And that’s not even saying nothing about the sodomy!” His laugh was an unbecoming guffaw, and he seemed very pleased with himself.

Lio stopped dead in his tracks, and Meis and Gueira felt a flash of concern as his shoulders started to shake. They were concerned that they’d gone too far until they realized, Lio was _laughing_. He turned to them and coughed, his chest tight from laughing. 

“Is now _really_ the appropriate time to make jokes about sodomy?” he wheezed, wiping his eyes. His men smiled smugly and simultaneously shrugged in answer. Those two definitely spent too much time together. “We need to get moving. Save any further jokes until after the church service,” Lio requested, picking up the pace again.

\----------------------------

When the Burnish men arrived at the church, it was far too dark to see anything. Clouds had since rolled in, drowning out the moonlight and forcing them to light candles and shield them. Lio took over and lit the way for Meis and Gueira to move into position. Lio held the light up for Meis, who deftly climbed a ladder up into the little alcove that served as additional storage space. He was no longer visible from the ground as he settled onto his belly, holding his rifle at the ready. As Meis melted into the dark, Lio guided Gueira, who made his way to the front of the church.

Gueira had elected to hide beneath the long white sheet that covered the front of the altar. He turned, and nearly jumped out of his skin when he made out the features of a face looking back at him in the thin light passing through the stained glass. Getting his heart rate under control, he whispered, “Oh, uh, hello…” He suddenly felt very strange, since he was carrying so many weapons while sitting next to an old statue of Jesus and hiding under a tablecloth. “I’m sorry for what we are about to do and I hope you can forgive me, but you… really do not need to see this.” Gueira turned the statue around to face away from him, and made the sign of the cross. 

With his men settled, Lio snuffed the candle out. He could hear the quiet, rhythmic lilt of Gueira’s voice as he worked his way through a practiced recitation of, “ _Hail Mary, full of grace_ …” As Lio slipped out the door, he could make out the quiet murmuring of, “ _Pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death,_ ” as he slipped out of the door, closing it behind him. He would bring up the rear, closing the trap once Foresight was inside. He made his way around the side of the church, where he waited just out of sight. Galo nor Foresight would be able to see him from where he was hiding, but he hoped that, with just a little bit of luck, neither of them would shut the doors behind them.

\----------------------------

Galo checked his watch again, and collected himself as much as he could. He made his way to the jailhouse to retrieve a lantern. As he lit the lantern, a shadow passed over the opening of the door. Galo felt cold sweat trickle down his spine, as three slow knocks were rapped on the frame. He whirled around, nearly upsetting the lantern with the sudden movement. 

“Something got you worked up, sheriff?” Foresight asked, looming in the doorway. “You seem a little… on edge this evening.” The lantern light cast him in a ghoulish pallor, making his teeth look yellow and jagged as he smiled. There was no friendliness, no mirth in it; it was all teeth, bared at a cornered animal. His hands were in his pockets and that made Galo nervous. “I’ll be escorting you to your little confessional. Let’s go ahead and get going. Never know what’s moving around out there in the dark.” Galo was suddenly very aware of the fact that he was alone.

He swallowed, his tongue sandpaper against the roof of his mouth. “T-thank you for the offer, but that’s not necessary.” Galo tried to play it cool, but Foresight only seemed to loom larger. 

“Make no mistake, sheriff,” Foresight said, leaning close to Galo’s face. His breath washed over him, humid and stinking of onion. “This is not an offer. You would be foolish to confuse it for one. This is an order.”

Galo’s rebellious streak reared its defiant head at that, and he had to fight back the urge to spit in this bastard’s face. “If I recall correctly, I am the sheriff of these parts, and I do not answer to the likes of you.” He puffed himself up to his full height, trying his best to look big and intimidating. He was by no means a small person, but it was peanuts compared to Foresight’s sheer mass. That monster made Galo look like a stick bug in comparison. 

Foresight leaned back and hummed, his feral grin receding into an amused and self-satisfied smirk. “It really is adorable that you still think that.” He turned on his heel and snapped his fingers, and called back to Galo, “Move it, sheriff. You’re wasting lamp oil, and I’m sure that a certain friend of yours is eagerly awaiting your arrival. I wonder if he’ll dress up for the occasion? It is a church service, after all.”

Galo had one job to do, and that was to go to the church. Lio never specified as to whether or not he had to do it alone.

\----------------------------

As they made their way over the uneven ground of the trail, Galo paused to check his pocket watch again. Foresight shoved him, forcing him to keep moving and They would arrive right on time, just as Lio had asked. Foresight walked a few steps behind him, letting Galo lead the way. When they finally arrived on the edge of the church property, the normally small, unassuming building stood imposing and whitewashed in the dull light of the moon and the yellow glow of Galo’s lantern. 

“Well?” Foresight said, shoving Galo forward again with a boot to the ass. “Go on then.” 

Galo took a deep breath and was honestly uncertain as to what would happen when he opened the doors. His hands shook slightly, making the light flicker and strobe as he reached to push open the heavy door. It swung inward, into the yawning maw of the church’s dark interior. Galo looked over his shoulder at the bounty hunter. The dead eyed look on the man’s face made him wish that he had not. Galo held the lantern aloft and marched inward, with what felt like certain doom both ahead of him and behind him. Galo held his breath as he walked those first few feet into the church, lit only by the unsteady light of the lamp he carried. He held in front of him as if it could keep evil at bay, as if he would be safe as long as he stood within the circle of its light. He exhaled slowly, trying to keep Foresight from picking up on his anxiety. Still, he would have been lying if he had said that he was not immensely relieved to enter the church and not immediately get shot in the head.

“Lio?” Galo called out into the dark, his voice reverberating in a way that made him feel nauseous. He wasn’t sure if he would feel better or worse if Lio answered him. His call was met with nothing, the air remaining stagnant and stale. He looked around, and began moving up the aisle toward the altar. “Lio, are you here?” he called out again. Still nothing.

“It would seem that we are alone here, sheriff,” he said, with some indecipherable emotion in his voice. Foresight’s slow and heavy steps followed behind him, echoing menacingly off of the hollow bird bones of the church rafters. “Still, it will be such a shame when your townsfolk find out what those savage Burnish shitstains did to you. Poor, poor Sheriff Thymos. He was so young, so beloved. He never even saw it coming when those filthy animals tore him apart.” The bounty hunter made a sad tsking sound, as if truly lamenting it.

Galo turned around, confused. “What do you mean, ‘what they did to me’? They didn’t do anything at all-” He stopped short as the silver of a knife blade glinted in the light. It was long and cruel-looking, with a vicious serration on the top edge. It was a tool made for the sole purpose of gutting animals. 

“Is that so?” Foresight asked, that slow, evil grin breaking his face apart into jagged edges. “That’s not what I heard,” he said, waving the knife with a flourish. “I heard that they cut up your pretty face, and they made sure that no one,” the bounty hunter continued, advancing on Galo as he licked his lips. “Would ever find all the little pieces,” Foresight jeered, his satisfaction clear in every word he spoke now. He was getting off on this.

Galo stood frozen as the lamp sputtered low, leaving Foresight backlit by the sickly glow of the moon and whatever fragmented light filtered in through the stained glass above them. “Foresight, you don’t have to do this,” Galo urged, subconsciously stepping back from the man stalking his way toward him. “You can walk away from this, you can still walk away! Nobody has to die!” He knew that he was pleading, but he could not help himself.

“How could I just walk away when I saw what they had done to you, sheriff?” Foresight cocked his head to the side like a dog, his face a mask of false sincerity. “Plus, I managed to take out all three of them in an effort to avenge your poor, sad soul.” The knife flashed again, much closer than Galo had thought. “It’s just a lucky coincidence that the bounty for all three would come to me. Maybe you’d call it a miracle? I know that I certainly would.” His manic expression made him look like a demon, his face carved with lines of shadow. The lantern went out.

Galo cursed as he scrambled to bring the lantern back to life, and his fingers scrabbled against the metal surface of the adjustment knob. With some stroke of luck or perhaps divine intervention, the light bloomed bright again and when it did, Galo saw a lithe frame silently sneaking up the aisle behind Foresight. His relief at seeing Lio splintered as Foresight lunged, sweeping the knife in a wide, slashing arc aimed directly for Galo’s face. He squeezed his eyes shut tight and braced himself for the inevitable pain as the report of a rifle echoed through the church.

A splash of red spattered dully against the white altar cloth, and the lantern fell from Galo’s hands to shatter on the floor. As lamp oil bled across the ground and began to soak into the dry wooden planks, the church floor ignited like so much tinder.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fire was spreading too quickly, already licking up the walls and working its way toward the roof. It had already consumed several wooden pews and it seemed hell-bent on making a meal of the rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have arrived at the end of this story, but don't be sad. It's not over, and an epilogue chapter remains.
> 
> Trigger warnings for assault, choking, and other weapon-based violence.
> 
> Thank you to everyone that has stuck around this long. I am terrified of not sticking the landing, but I could not have made it this far without you guys. Thank you for reading.
> 
> \- cap

It made Lio proud to know that Meis’ aim was true even in the low light. The impact of the rifle slug caused the bounty hunter to drop to a knee, wresting the arc of his knife from its course and away from Galo’s face. The sheriff still screamed as pain lanced white hot across his belly, a laceration sweeping across his abdomen from rib cage to hip bone. The force of Foresight’s transferred momentum sent him reeling backward and knocking his head hard against the floor. The sheriff lashed out with the toe of his boot, striking out at the attacker’s elbow and it folded, making him drop the knife and sending it skittering off to the side and out of sight. Foresight’s hand immediately went to clutch at the ragged wound in his shoulder, a steadily growing stain now blossoming crimson across his faded shirt. The man snarled in rage and tried to lunge for Galo again, only to be thrown off. Lio, who had run to Galo’s aid, wound up as he approached and kicked the assailant in the lower ribs so hard that something gave with a sickening crunch. Growling as struggling to stand, Foresight turned his attention on Lio, gritting his teeth and spitting a stream of bloody saliva as Lio aimed another crushing blow at his already damaged ribs. Alas, it would never land, as the bounty hunter’s massive paws wrapped around Lio’s slender ankle and began to twist and squeeze as if he would grind the bones to dust with his hands. Lio shouted in agony as the long bones of his leg threatened to fracture and began to rain blows down on the back of his head and neck with closed fists. 

Galo’s brain screeched to a halt as he lay prone and bleeding onto his shirt. He fought to come to terms with the rapidly spiraling situation unfolding before him, but blood loss was making him dizzy. He was struck by how silly it was that all of this was happening while he was wearing a shirt with flowers on it. He hadn’t even gotten to show it to Lio. A sudden movement swept aside the altar cloth and he nearly punched Gueira in the face out of pure reflex when he scrambled out from under the table. The redhead was wielding some long metal object that Galo could not identify, his vision swimming with the heat from the fire and delirium. As Gueira saw that Foresight was wounded but not down, he immediately grabbed Galo by the back of the jacket, yanking him up the low set of stairs and onto the altar platform. The bounty hunter briefly let go of Lio’s leg, sensing Galo’s vulnerability. Foresight snarled as he forced his injured arm toward his boot knife, intent on slashing at Galo again. The knife, although smaller than his initial weapon, flashed too fast for Galo to process, biting into his calf and leaving a yawning gash in its wake. The little blade was beyond sharp, cleaving through fabric and flesh alike as if they were water. Galo started to see sparks dancing at the edge of his vision, and he was unsure if they were from the fire or from the pain. He struggled to pay attention as Gueira shouted in his ear, the torment of his wounds threatening to pull him under. 

The fire was spreading too quickly, already licking up the walls and working its way toward the roof. It had already consumed several wooden pews and it seemed hell-bent on making a meal of the rest. Foresight wrenched Lio’s leg hard, dragging him to the ground and used his weight to hold the smaller man down. “Gueira, get Galo out of here!” Lio snarled and Gueira jumped to comply. The boss was snapping his teeth, trying to bite and scratch at the bounty hunter’s face and hands as he fought like a wildcat to get out of Foresight’s clutches. How was he still thinking of Galo when his own life was at risk like this? “Gueira, get the _fuck_ out, RIGHT now!” Gueira knew an order when he heard it, but Galo stood stock still, unable to think in the growing chaos. Gueira grabbed his belt and began dragging him out of the burning building. Meis appeared as they approached the exit, hopping down from the ladder with the rifle slung over his back. “I can’t take another shot! The smoke is too thick, and I’d risk accidentally hitting the boss!” He shielded them with his skinny body as a window blew out, but never ceased doggedly ushering Gueira and Galo outside. 

The sounds of struggle continued, escalating in concert with the rage of the fire, and Galo finally surfaced from the haze of fire and blood as the cool night air embraced him. He tore himself from Gueira’s grip and stepped back toward the danger they had just barely escaped. “I’m sorry, I can’t leave Lio alone,” he said, pleading for them to understand as he pulled his kerchief up over his nose and mouth. “He’s trapped because he tried to save me!” Galo ducked back into the church as acrid black smoke came billowing out of the open doors.

“We’ll come with you! We can help!” Gueira tried to yell over the roar of the fire and follow Galo back inside, but Meis jerked him backward as a burning rafter came plummeting to the ground, taking the only open entrance with it. Galo crouched low as he fought his way back through the smoke and spreading flames, kicking away burning debris and chunks of wood, and navigating around the broken bones of the church as he went. His eyes were stinging and tears ran down his face, streaking through airborne still-burning embers and ash that bit into his skin. The sounds of screaming and fighting had stopped, and that was far more worrying. He stumbled his way through the doomed building. In the dark glow of the fire, it seemed to go on forever and he wondered if this was what hell was like. When he finally laid eyes on Lio, the smaller man was weakly grappling with the gigantic hands that were ferociously wrapped around his neck. His face was purple from lack of oxygen and sheeted with blood from a nasty laceration above his left eye. Even as he was dying, Lio was still trying to fight, but it was fruitless. Foresight was bigger and stronger, and he was doing his damndest to crush Lio’s windpipe and bash his skull against the floor. 

Galo forgot his wounds entirely, overcome by a frenzied determination to save his Lio. The sheriff sprinted toward them, reaching down to sweep up the nearest blunt object he could find as he passed the crumbling remains of a storage cabinet. To Lio’s bloodshot eyes, Galo looked like something divine as he materialized out of the smoke, his arms unfurling above him like the scorched wings of an avenging angel. Lio squeezed his eyes shut tight as Galo bludgeoned Foresight with as much strength as he could muster, screaming in pain again as the wound in his belly tore at the edges. Communion wine rained down over Lio as the bottle shattered over the back of the bounty hunter’s head, mixing with blood where the glass cut into his scalp. It splashed over Lio’s face and hands, sizzling as it evaporated in the heat of the blaze. The white-knuckle grip around Lio’s neck loosened just enough for him to suck in a gasping breath. His heat damaged hands scrabbled against the floor as he tried to reach beneath himself. His clumsy fingers closed on nothing, threatening to tangle in the fabric of his shirt, before finally closing on what he sought.

The blessed coolness of the smooth bone handle felt like a miracle on his blistered skin, and he tried his best to aim for the prominent vein in the side of Foresight’s thick neck. As the bounty hunter’s attention snapped back to Lio’s attack, the weapon slashed him across the face, taking his right eye with it. Foresight roared in fury and agony as blood poured from the ruined socket. Enraged, he tried to throttle Lio again, but Lio was too fast and he was _pissed_. Galo had gotten out, but he had come back for him, putting himself in danger because of Foresight. Lio would not allow that to go unpunished. He thrashed and twisted, fighting against the superior weight of his opponent, ever unwilling to let Kray Foresight be the one to kill him. The church began to crumble, the ruined structure no longer able to support its own weight. A sickening cracking sound, like the splintering of bone, caused Galo to look up, and he dashed to snatched Lio away by the wrists. No sooner was Lio clear of Foresight’s grip then a cross beam, scorched and blackened by flame and smoke alike, plummeted to the ground. Foresight, partially blinded and bleeding to death from a gunshot wound, had not moved in time. It fell on him from a height and he was trapped beneath it, crushed from the hips down on impact. He did not move again.

Unwilling to find out if Foresight was still breathing, Galo grabbed Lio by the wrists and dragged him to his feet. His knees gave out, but he was held upright by Galo’s arm around his waist. They leaned hard on each other to support their combined weight, and Lio bent down to grab the poker that Gueira had dropped. It seared his palm like a brand, but he had not come this far and nearly died to let something like hot metal stop him now. He glanced over his shoulder at Galo then struck a blow that shattered what remained of the stained-glass window. Broken shards sprinkled their hair and clothes, glittering in the moonlight as they dragged themselves from the burning church and out into the night. Lio tossed the poker aside, unable to hold onto it any longer. Still desperately clinging to each other, they staggered away toward where Meis and Gueira waved their arms and jumped up and down to beckon them. The Burnish men embraced them both, but quickly released them as both Lio and Galo hissed in pain. The uninjured men had panic written clear on their faces, horrified as they checked them over for injuries and found an alarming catalog of wounds. 

Lio’s fair hair was stained black with soot and part of it had burned away, leaving it asymmetrical and strange. Galo did not fare much better, his mane of dark locks wilted and singed from the intense heat. Meis set to work on shredding a shirt into strips for bandages, yelling to Gueira that they needed to stop Galo’s bleeding. His exhaustion was bone deep, and Gueira kept gently slapping his face to keep him awake. Galo scowled at him, annoyed and weak from blood loss and exertion. 

The sheriff latched onto Lio’s uninjured hand and squeezed as Meis gave him a countdown. “Okay, I am going to pull the bandage tight on a count of three. Three, two-” 

An agonized scream ripped from Galo’s chest as his knees buckled, leaning hard on Lio to hold him up as the Burnish cinched the binding around his belly and began applying pressure. Gueira looked at Lio’s face, judging that the cut on his forehead would need stitches and went to reach for his branded hand. He frowned as Lio shooed him away, forcing him to focus on Galo who was still actively bleeding. The outlaw winced as he tenderly probed at his sore neck, knowing that it would be a field of grotesque contusions in the morning. Overcome by a sudden wave of dizziness, Lio collapsed to the ground. His small body had taken a severe beating, and he was left with nothing but bone-deep exhaustion as the adrenaline faded. Galo looked at his lover, his partner, and his heart ached as he took in the extent of the bruising on Lio’s pretty face. He was certain that he did not look much better himself, but he wished he could have spared him at least some of that suffering. Meis helped him lower himself to the ground, and Galo gently lay down beside Lio, relishing the cool kiss of dew on his tortured skin. He lay tucked against Lio's side and pressed his forehead to Lio’s own as grit his teeth as Meis wrapped his damaged leg.

Throat sore and burning from both smoke and emotion, he turned to Lio and cupped his face in his less injured hand. Lio winced a little as rough fingers traced over the soot blackened curve of his battered cheekbone. They looked at each other for a long time, sharing breath until Galo found words again. “When I saw you laying there, I thought you were dead. I thought he had strangled you." His breath hitched when he thought about how close he had come to watching Lio die there. "I am so sorry that it took me so long to get to you.” 

Lio tried to laugh but coughed and winced as it set off a twinge in his bruised ribs. “Galo, you have nothing to be sorry for. You saved me. That’s what matters. I’d be dead if you had not come back for me. Thank you for not leaving me behind.” He leaned forward and kissed Galo on his chapped lips, soft and careful, and whispered, “Let’s go home.”


	12. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens in the aftermath of the fire?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not the epilogue. There is still one more chapter, and it will be a tasty one.

The aftermath of the fire bloomed like a bruise on Lio’s heart. He could not rest or relax, haunted by nightmares of Foresight looming over him with his hands clenched around his throat or watching Galo fade into dust, burned away to nothing because Lio could not save him. After far too many sleepless nights, he slipped out of the house in the early morning hours to go for a walk in an effort to clear his mind. Without realizing it, he had wandered back to the charred carcass of the church. Broken glass crunched under his soles as he made his way toward the middle of the building where the beam had fallen. Rubble covered it now, but the site was burned into his mind in the same way that the fire poker had branded his hand. He stood there in the ashes, his heart pounding as he hesitated, reaching out to the wreckage. The beam still had some heft to it, but it was lighter than he thought it would be as he shifted it away from what lay beneath.

  
He took a deep breath, steeling himself for what may or may not be there when he removed the last piece. As the last section of the beam rolled in his hands, he stood over the remains of a fire-ravaged corpse. Blackened flesh and the bright white of bone stood in stark contrast to each other and Lio felt nothing. He thought that maybe he would feel angry or relieved at seeing evidence of Foresight’s death but truthfully? He was just tired. As flakes of burned wood and dust kicked up around his feet, he struck a match and lit up a cigarette. He went to take a drag, but the taste of the tobacco soured in his mouth. It tasted too much like fire. He tossed it aside in disgust and ground it to nothing beneath his boot. Still staring at the corpse as the sun came up on the horizon, he spit on the charred mess before turning and walking away. He made his way back to the sheriff’s house, and quietly let himself back inside. He stripped himself out of his clothes and climbed back under the covers to press himself tight against Galo’s sleepy warm body. The sheriff grumbled a little as he stirred, wrapping his arms around Lio and pulling him close. He buried his nose in Lio’s downy hair and inhaled deeply, still half-asleep. 

  
“Did you find what you were looking for?” Galo slurred as Lio burrowed further into his side.

  
Lio, for the first time in weeks, felt safe. “Yes,” he whispered. “I think I did.” Good riddance.


	13. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I want you to be here when I go to bed, and when I wake up in the morning. I think about you all the time, about what you might want for dinner or if you’d like this new thing Ignis got in at the store. I’ve never felt like that about anybody before.” He smiled then, his eyes crinkling at the corners. He gave a light self-deprecating laugh as he continued, “I’m not an educated man by most standards, but I do know one thing, Lio. I know that I want you in all the ways one can want a person."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will be making minor changes to correct for spelling and grammar over the next day or so. I got so excited to post this that I barely proofread it... :|
> 
> Anyway, here it is, the very last chapter of the longest piece of creative writing I've ever done. Thank you so much to everyone that has commented, given kudos, or otherwise encouraged me to keep going.
> 
> Please enjoy this steamy, steamy epilogue.

_Two months after the fire._

“I got a letter today,” Galo said, crumbs of cornbread tumbling out of his mouth. They sat hunched over together at the table in Galo’s house, Lio with his feet kicked up in Galo’s lap as he watched the sheriff shovel down the supper Lio had made. It wasn’t much, but Galo looked so deeply happy as he tucked into his plate of ham and beans. This had become a comfortable habit between them, sharing a meal and a bed for the evening.

“Is that so?” Lio asked, raising an affectionate yet disgruntled eyebrow at the sloppy mess that was his lover. The man was a whirlwind of energy, even when his mouth was full. 

“Yep,” Galo chirped, smacking his lips as he wiped his face with his handkerchief. “Governor’s office. They want to investigate.”

“How unfortunate,” Lio lamented. “A particular missing persons case?”

“The very same,” Galo sighed. “Letter says they’ll be here in about three days. They want to have a look around, ask some questions. Try to get to the bottom of where he took off to after he attacked me and burned down the church.” They looked at each other seriously for a moment, both knowing the truth of the matter but unwilling to say it out loud.

“What a shame. And here I was hoping that maybe for once, something could be easy.” Lio ran a hand through his hair then propped his chin on his fist. “I’ll need to leave town for a while. Can’t have the law coming down on your head.”

“Darlin’,” Galo replied with an exaggerated drawl as he pointed a finger at his shiny new badge. “I _am_ the law.”

Lio rolled his eyes and scoffed. “So you keep saying. The point remains the same, as long as there are Rangers in the area, I need to make myself scarce. Still a wanted fugitive, you know.”

“You could stick around, we can try to find you a disguise!” Galo teased. He gasped and snapped his fingers, grinning gleefully as an idea precipitated. “I’ve got it! We could put a little dress on you and tell them you’re my wife! Lord knows your cooking is good enough.”

Lio smacked him on the arm, and Galo yelped as Lio scolded him. “I am _not_ your goddamn wife, Galo Thymos.” The blush on his cheeks and ears indicated that, perhaps, he was not completely opposed to the idea either. Lio tucked his hair behind his ear, trying not to show how flustered the thought made him.

“I don’t want you to leave,” Galo murmured, suddenly very serious.

“It isn’t forever,” Lio soothed, running his hand over Galo’s broad shoulders. “I’ll only be gone a month, and maybe not even that long. I’ll head out in the morning and take Meis and Gueira with me.”

Galo sulked, clearly feeling that Lio was missing his point. “That’s not what I mean.” He chewed on his lip, struggling to put words together. “It’s not that you’re leaving…” He trailed off, looking down at his hands. “It’s that you still don’t stay.”

Lio tilted his head quizzically, trying to understand. His brow furrowed. “I get the feeling we aren’t talking about the investigation anymore.”

Galo shook his head for a moment then looked up at him, jaw squared as if ready for a fight. “You don’t _stay_. You’re always gone in the morning, and I don’t know why.”

Lio looked at him for a long moment then sat back in his chair, sighing in defeat. “Truthfully?”

“If you are so inclined,” Galo said casually, still offering him the out even as he pressed Lio to talk about his feelings. Lio _hated_ talking about his feelings.

“I don’t… I’m afraid of what it would mean.” Lio looked up and sighed, blowing his bangs off of his forehead. “To really call a place home.”

“I see,” Galo smiled softly and said, “You don’t know what it’s like to be still. If you call it home on purpose, then it can be taken away.”

Lio’s gaze snapped to him, eyes roaming over his face. “Yes,” he rasped, caught out. “You may yet grow tired of me.”

“Lio, I want you to stay.” Galo’s eyes once again burned with intensity. Lio felt naked under the weight of his complete attention, as if the sheriff was looking into him, looking through him. “I want you to be here when I go to bed, and when I wake up in the morning. I think about you all the time, about what you might want for dinner or if you’d like this new thing Ignis got in at the store. I’ve never felt like that about anybody before.” He smiled then, his eyes crinkling at the corners. He gave a light self-deprecating laugh as he continued, “I’m not an educated man by most standards, but I do know one thing, Lio. I know that I want you in all the ways one can want a person. I’m not quite sure what that means. You’ll have to teach me. But...” His words were so big and so serious, and yet a sweet blush still kissed his cheeks. He had given a lot of thought to this speech, practicing it in his head so that he would be sure to say everything right. 

He had spent most all the nights that he was alone thinking about it and making sure that he knew, albeit vaguely, what he was asking for. He wasn’t a complete idiot, he knew the way bodies tended to fit together enough to get the idea. Still, he’d since learned more than enough detail from Meis and Gueira about the mechanics of it all. That particular conversation had been both a humiliating and enlightening experience, that began with Galo working up his courage by drinking far too much and asking far too bold of questions. Luckily, the two men found it incredibly entertaining to play teacher to the world’s most sheltered student. It was a conversation that Galo had made them swear to never tell Lio about, as he would quite probably immediately die of shame if his partner ever learned of it.

Regardless, his thoughts always came back to Lio. He thought a lot about the night that they had been interrupted and he regretted that it had ended the way it had. He wanted that again, to chase that feeling to the end. They had been intimate since, mouths and hands alike, but not in the way that Lio had offered before. His face was alight with embarrassment as he took Lio’s delicate hand. It looked so small compared to his own. “I’m not afraid of it anymore. If you catch my meaning.” Lio looked back at him with a hungry expression, but Lio was Lio, and he would always wait for a formal invitation. Galo stroked his thumb over Lio’s scarred palm, the skin there slightly paler and shinier compared to the rest. “I want you, and I don’t know how I can make it any clearer than that.” He raised an eyebrow in challenge, hoping that he looked nonchalant and confident. He also hoped that Lio could not hear his heart pounding.

Lio looked at him for a moment before a slow shark-like grin spread over his face. He uncoiled his body with feline grace and slid onto Galo’s lap, wrapping his arms around his neck. “You want me, do you?” He nipped at the shell of Galo’s ear, causing him to shiver. Leaning closer, he whispered, “Let me take you to bed, Galo Thymos.”

Galo nearly upset the entire table as he abruptly shot up from his chair, still holding Lio in his arms and wrapped Lio’s lithe legs about his waist. He marched them to the mattress, briefly stumbling over his own feet as he moved and dumped Lio on the bed in an unceremonious heap. Lio squawked indignantly but started laughing as Galo hurried to pull off his boots, tossing them to the floor. Galo’s anticipation and inexperience did not dampen his enthusiasm, nearly tearing the sleeve off his shirt in his failed efforts to try to pull it over his head. It got stuck and he realized that in his haste, he had forgotten to undo the buttons.

“Jesus, Galo, slow down!” Lio grabbed him by the belt buckle and reeled him in close so that Galo’s crotch was pressed to Lio’s chest. Resting his chin on Galo’s belly, he looked up at his lover. “We’ve got all night, what are you rushing around for?”

Galo smiled sheepishly, scrubbing a hand over the back of his neck. “Guess I just got a little excited.”

Galo gulped as Lio looked up at him like he wanted to eat him alive. Lio shook his head fondly, and sighed. “Oh Galo, I am going to love taking my time with you. Kneel for me.” 

Galo dropped to his knees, pressing close between Lio’s spread legs. “Lio, I want to be yours,” he said, shy and genuine as he looked up through his eyelashes. “Teach me how to be good to you.” Oh, he knew exactly what he was doing as he said that. He knew how that cut Lio to the quick and wound him up faster than anything else. He wanted to light that fuse and watch it burn. Lio went still for a moment, before twisting his fingers in Galo’s thick hair and dragging him in for a heated kiss. 

“Get up on the bed.” Lio commanded, his eyes dark and hungry. When Galo complied, Lio pressed him back onto the mattress. Without being asked, Galo folded his arms above his head with his hands visible. Lio kissed him again and straddled his hips. The curve of his ass rubbed across Galo’s crotch as he leaned forward to begin to undo the buttons of Galo’s shirt. The former outlaw took his time and savored it, revealing inch after inch of perfect golden skin. He slid down Galo’s body and began to drop a trail of kisses from his collar bone, down his chest, to his belly. When he reached the scar that draped across Galo’s middle, he felt his heart twinge in sadness and guilt. He pressed a reverent kiss to center of the scar’s path, acknowledging it as a brutalist monument, a mean reminder of what they had survived. Galo shivered again as Lio’s kisses became open-mouthed and wet, sucking little marks into the flat plane of this stomach. Galo’s breath caught as Lio nipped at his hip bones, dipping his tongue into the vee of his abdominals. His hips bucked as Lio’s hands trailed up his sides, resting in the curved spaces between his ribs. The touch was hot enough to feel like a brand, and Galo felt the burn of it to his core.

Galo tipped his head back, baring his throat to Lio. Anticipation curled hard in his gut as his lover sucked a mark beneath the corner of his jaw. It would prove impossible to hide, but Lio had no shame and got a dark satisfaction out of showing off what was his. Galo groaned deep in his chest as Lio bit into the meat of his shoulder, then soothed the wound with his tongue. Continuing his path down Galo’s body, he paused to tease Galo’s nipples, plucking at each bud until it hardened beneath his touch. He swirled his tongue over it, feeling Galo’s breath hitch beneath him. The sheriff rolled his hips in an involuntary movement, already hard in the confines of his trousers. Lio ground back against him, making Galo whine as he searched for more friction. Lio tugged at his shirt and Galo sat up to let him pull it off and then press him back to the mattress.

“You said that you wanted me to teach you, right?” Sitting tall, Lio began working at his own shirt, stripping it from his shoulders slowly and letting the material slide off him. The slow reveal of skin was enticing and teasing, causing Galo to lick his lips.

“I want to make you feel good,” Galo stammered, distracted by the sight of Lio’s head tipping back as he dragged his own hands over his chest and belly. 

“Give me your hands, Galo,” he said as a flush had started to spread across his fevered skin. Galo did, and Lio pressed his hands over Galo’s own and placed them against his chest. His voice was still low, but slightly breathier now as he began to guide Galo’s fingers to where he wanted to be touched. Goosebumps rippled across his skin as he moved, the nipple peaking as used Galo’s fingers to stroke and tease it. “Pay close attention,” Lio sighed in satisfaction, rocking his hips as he dragged his lover’s hands over his body. “This is how I like to be touched.” Galo could not look away, his eyes glued to the slow work his hands were doing over Lio’s perfect skin. 

Lio leaned back, releasing one of Galo’s hands so that he could support himself on one arm. With the hand he still held, he pushed and pulled, working Galo’s hand down to palm him through his pants. He ground his hardness against the broad palm, letting out little moans as he did so. “See how good you make me feel?” He threaded his fingers with Galo’s and began to slowly stroke himself through the cloth. “Only you get me like this.” 

Galo felt like he was going to burst into flames, so enthralled and turned on that sitting still and letting himself be led felt like torture. “Lio,” he whispered his name with all the reverence of a prayer as he watched his lover seek his own pleasure in Galo’s hands. It was becoming too much, “Lio, please. You have to stop moving or I’ll-” 

Lio released his hand and leaned back over him, licking a hot stripe up the side of his neck. “Or you’ll what?”

“Or I’ll… You know,” Galo responded lamely. “I’ll finish before we even get started.”

“Oh, do you have other plans for this evening, sheriff?” Lio asked, continuing to lick and suck over the tender spot on Galo’s neck that made his hips jerk involuntarily. 

“I thought we could, um,” Galo trailed off, not wanting to say it and hoping that Lio would take a hint for once.

“Go on, honey,” Lio crooned, the roll of his pelvis against Galo’s erection never ceasing. “Tell me what you wanted.”

“I wanted to, _ah_ ,” Galo’s eyes screwed shut, too over-stimulated to be able to look at Lio above him for a moment longer. He took several deep breaths in through his nose, trying desperately to hold on to his last thread of composure. “Please, Lio, don’t make me. I can’t, I can’t say it!” He put his hands over his eyes, trying to hide.

Lio tsked at Galo’s resistance, saying, “Oh well, then. I guess I will just have to leave you here and take care of this by myself. What a pity.”

Galo whined, high and frustrated as his face was aflame with an intense and delicious shame. He mumbled his answer into his hands, unable to look at Lio as he said it.

“I’m sorry,” Lio said, grinning sharp and a little mean. “What did you say? I couldn’t quite make it out.”

“I said that I want you to…” Galo screamed internally, knowing that if he wanted this then he would not be able to escape having to say it out loud. Lio was Lio, after all. He required a formal invitation. He took a shaky breath and pulled his hands from his face, still keeping his eyes closed. “I want you to take me.”

Lio kissed him hard and fiercely, all tongue and teeth in reward for his courage. “Oh honey, all you had to do was ask.” He slipped off of Galo, moving between his legs to begin working at his belt buckle. “I’m happy to oblige.” Once the belt was open, he made quick work of the rest of Galo’s clothes. His cock sprang free, already hard and wanting where it rested against his exposed belly. Lio drank in the sight like he was dying for it, committing every shadowed curve, every detail of Galo’s body to memory. Lio was hungry for him, and no matter how much he touched him, it would never be enough. The differences between their bodies were far more obvious and stark now, as Galo was tall and heavily muscled in comparison to Lio’s more compact and wiry frame. Still, it would be Lio that got to have this, that got to have him and that thought glowed like something living deep within his chest. He couldn’t stand it any longer, stripping his clothes quickly and efficiently before clambering back onto the bed to settle between Galo’s spread knees. Galo’s hips rocked up as he came near, eager for the press of bare skin against skin. Lio relished it, this closeness, but nothing could ever make him feel as awake and human as seeing how obviously Galo desired him.

He sucked his index finger into his mouth, and then traced the prominent vein that ran up the underside of Galo’s cock. The sheriff gasped, twitching at the slickened touch. Sweat had begun to bead on his chest, and those bright blue eyes were glassed over in pleasure as Lio began to slowly stroke him. He smirked with smug gratification as clear fluid began to drip from the head of Galo’s cock, leaving a smear against his abdomen. He was gasping and moaning as Lio began to work him over, slowly working him over from root to tip. When Galo’s eyes closed in pleasure, he began to trail his other fingers down and down, over his balls, down the skin of his perineum. Galo began to wiggle, unsure if he wanted to press into the touch or pull away from the invasive movement. He wanted more of Lio, but he did not know what came next and that was enough to make him open his eyes and prop himself up on an elbow.

“Lio, I need you,” he panted, his eyes burning with lust as he stared at his lover. “I need you, but you have to talk me through it. I can’t go into this blind, you have to teach me.” Lio smiled and Galo sat forward further, seeking a kiss. 

“Have you ever touched yourself here?” Lio asked, lightly rubbing a slick finger against Galo’s tightly furled hole. His lover blushed furiously and shook his head, unable to form words as Lio continued to touch him there. 

“Good. I’d die of jealousy if I didn’t get to be first,” Lio said, murmuring into Galo’s mouth as they continued trading kisses. “So, I’m going to get my fingers nice and slick. That will make it easier going forward.” Galo had begun to get used to the idea of being touched there, as if it were skin like any other, but Lio continued. “I’m going to stroke and pet you until you let me inside. After that, I’m going to help you get ready for me. We have to go slow and you have to be patient. I will not hurt you, and I will not let you rush me.”

“I understand,” Galo stammered. 

Lio tapped him on the thigh and said, “Lay on your stomach. It will be easier that way.”

Galo’s face burned red again, but he nodded his head in assent. Lio kissed him again, then leaned off the bed to dig a small vial out of the pocket of his pants.

\----------------------------

Galo’s mind was no longer capable of forming coherent thoughts. He’d lost the ability to speak the second Lio had slipped his first finger inside of him. He had been embarrassed about letting Lio so close to a place that no other person had ever seen or touched, but Lio had eased him into it. Now, blissfully unaware of how much time had passed, Lio was lazily pumping two fingers in and out of him, soaking up the sight of Galo’s hole stretched around him. Galo could do nothing but moan and take it, drooling into his pillow as Lio stroked over a place inside him that made him feel like lightning had struck his spine. He’d never known his body could do that, and he wasn’t sure if it was some kind of magic Lio had worked. Any semblance of shame had fled as Lio had nipped at the curve of his ass cheek, and he groaned as he reflexively clenched down and drove those talented fingers directly into that sweet little spot inside him. He was a fucked-out mess, but Lio showed no signs of slowing down. He was intent on wringing every drop of pleasure out of Galo, using him for all he was worth. Galo gasped as the fingers inside him scissored open, stretching him further before Lio pressed in a third. There was a burn that came with it, lighting up his nerves and he whined as he rocked back on it further. 

Lio chuckled darkly, stroking his free hand up and down Galo’s flank. His hands were cool against Galo’s now feverish skin. “Who would have known you would be so desperate for this? Hmm?”

Galo whimpered; he hadn’t known it himself. He hadn’t known this was something he wanted until Lio gave it to him. All he could do was gasp out Lio’s name as something hot and molten twisted in his gut. He was so close, and he increased his rhythm, demanding more and more from Lio as he worked his fingers in and out. 

“ _Galo Thymos_ , you’d better stop that right now,” Lio growled, as the pinch he placed on Galo’s thigh went ignored. Lio was determined to keep the same pace, smacking Galo hard on the ass and forcing him to slow down. “I will draw this out all night if you don’t stop your rushing. I will go as slow as I damn well please, and you will just lay there like a good boy and take it.”

Galo shook, his thighs trembling in frustration as he panted and struggled to catch his breath. “Please Lio,” he begged unabashedly. “Please, I need more, it’s not enough!” He sounded wanton and needy to his own ears, so far beyond shame in his ecstasy. 

Lio smacked his ass again, and he cried out. “I will tell you what you need,” Lio hissed. “I will tell you when you get more.”

Galo whimpered, biting hard into his lower lip as Lio nudged his legs even further apart. His chest had long since pressed to the mattress, his arms weak and unable to support him. Lio started to move faster and pressure began to build low in Galo’s gut, stars exploding behind his eyes as Lio began to jerk him off at the same time. His orgasm came on so strong and so fast, that Galo could only choke out a cry as his body clenched, and he suddenly spilled onto the quilt beneath him. He sagged, his knees buckling beneath him.

“So good for me,” Lio murmured, petted his back and thighs. “Do you think you can give me one more?”

Galo drew in a shuddering breath, shocks pulsing up his lower back as Lio’s hand continued moving inside him. He whimpered and wiggled, but he still nodded his head yes. He gasped as Lio withdrew his fingers, suddenly feeling strangely empty.

“Look at you,” Lio praised, gently stroking over Galo’s softened hole as he sat up on his knees and stroked a wet hand over his own aching cock. “I think you’re ready for me.”

“Lio, Lio, wait,” he panted, trying to turn to look at Lio as the blunt head of his cock began to press at his entrance.

Lio withdrew at once and leaned around to look at him, his face drawn in concern. “Is something wrong? Did I hurt you?”

“Need to see you,” Galo begged, panting but not yet exhausted. “Need to see you when you…”

Lio smiled tenderly as he helped ease Galo onto his back, pressing kisses to his forehead, the tip of his nose, his lips. “You are so lovely,” he murmured, then returned to his place between Galo’s legs. “Better?”

“Much better,” Galo nodded and smacked Lio on the ass with the heel of his foot. “Now get a move on.” Galo had gone soft after he had come, but his dick was already starting to show interest again.

Lio gave him a look of fond exasperation and pinched the inside of his thigh again. “Don’t you boss me, Galo Thymos.” He slicked himself up again with what remained of the vial and began to press inside. 

Galo gasped as the hard length of him slid inside in one smooth, slow motion, and he panted as the burn of the stretch momentarily overwhelmed his senses. Lio was not particularly gifted in the size aspect, but he was thick, and he was Galo’s first. He would always be Galo’s first. Lio began to roll his hips, sliding in and out of Galo’s body in a steady drag. 

“So good for me, baby,” Lio praised him as he began to roll his hips against him. The angle was wrong, but Galo still moaned outright, unable to be quiet anymore, if he had ever been at all. “Look at you, taking my cock like you were made for it,” Lio spoke, filth falling from his mouth like it was only natural. He tucked his hands under Galo’s knees, and roughly pressed them back to hold him open. “So fucking greedy, you already got yours and now I’m going to take mine,” he growled, his nails digging into Galo’s thick thighs. Galo was fully hard again, and his cock slapped wetly against his stomach as Lio began to work up a rhythm. 

The room was filled with the sounds of panting and the little _ah, ah, ah_ moans that were punched out of Galo with every stroke of Lio’s cock against his prostate. “Touch yourself. Show me how good it feels,” he demanded, fucking into Galo with abandon. Lio’s skin was slick with sweat, slapping against Galo’s own as he chased after his own climax. His pace quickly became punishing, pounding into Galo as the sheriff began to work himself up again. He pinched at his own nipple as he rolled his balls in his hand, and Lio wanted to devour him. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” Lio cursed, yanking on Galo’s legs to shift his weight and change the angle. He was relentless, consuming Galo and burning him up with him. “You had better come again, Galo,” he hissed. “I won’t stop until you do, I’ll keep going until you fall apart and then I’ll just keep fucking you. Give me what I want, Galo,” he demanded, thrusts pointed and purposeful. “Don’t you want to be good to me? Give me what I want.” He was relentless, and Galo’s cries grew in volume as Lio broke him down into a million little pieces. When he shattered, it was explosive. He came, still as forceful as the first time, making a mess of his chest and belly. Lio did not let up, but his rhythm had become stilted and sloppy. “I’m going to come in you,” he said, a wicked grin on his flushed face. “I’m going to mark you, the first cock you ever took, and it will always be me that filled you up first. Ask me for it.”

Galo whined as the last waves of his orgasm receded, leaving him and overstimulated and teary mess. “Please Lio,” he gasped. “Please, come in me. I need it.” Galo was not just playing along, it was the truth. He wanted it, needed Lio to mark him inside and out. Lio cursed again and bent down to bite Galo’s shoulder as he came, spilling inside of Galo’s spent body.

\----------------------------

They lay together for a long while after that, a sweaty tangle of mess and limbs. Lio was the first to regain his senses, walking to the wash basin and washing his hands before wetting a cloth for Galo. His lover was lost to the world, having fallen asleep on his side as soon as Lio had pulled out of him. Come still dripped out of his thoroughly used hole, visible to Lio where he stood. He began to run the cool cloth over Galo’s face, moving him gently to wipe the mess from his chest and belly. Galo grumbled and squirmed a little as Lio took care of the rest of the mess but did not stir any further. 

Lio came back to bed to lie with him for a while, and Galo snuggled up close to him, burying his face in Lio’s armpit. It could not have possibly been pleasant, but Galo was strange like that. He hummed as Lio pressed a kiss to the top of his head and muttered something.

“What was that?” Lio asked quietly, unsure if Galo had actually spoken to him or if he was asleep. His lover moved slightly and mumbled sleepily against Lio’s body. Lio’s heart twisted in his chest as he processed what had been said. He could not say it back, would not say it back until he could give Galo what he deserved. He would not say it until he came back to Galo for keeps, until he could prove that his choice to stay was real. He wrapped his arms around Galo and was still for a long time.

\----------------------------

In the morning, Galo still woke alone, but his body was sore in a bone-deep way that would prove satisfying over the next few days. He stretched and got up to get a drink of water. There was a note pinned to the door, written in that familiar elegant handwriting. Galo smiled as he read it and folded it back. He pressed a kiss to the little scrap of paper and tucked it in his shirt pocket where it would sit for the next month.

_Wait for me. I’ll be home soon._

_Yours, L_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you liked this piece, you will be happy to know that the sequel is already available, and it is the next work in this series, titled To Quench and Temper. I plan to write a few more vignettes that will continue to expand this universe. 
> 
> I also have a new multi-chapter piece outlined that will be for a brand new AU I've made, focusing on the relationship between a human and the sleep paralysis demon that visits him every night. 
> 
> I hope to see you all in the comments there, and thank you again for everything. 
> 
> \- cap


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